The Perfect Team
by Thunder.Blade132
Summary: Once, an oracle foretold the coming of four youths. A leader. A warrior. A healer. And a guardian. These youths were destined to destroy the dark forces of the world once and for all. And what do the villains do? Everything in their power to stop the four from knowing their true power. But even they cannot stop fate. Rise of the Brave Tangled Dragons.
1. Corona

**A/N:** **First off, ****_this is not my story._**

**A friend of mine, Skye, asked if I could post this for her, and I agreed. I'll update it as soon as she sends me the piece. I don't know how often that will be, it might be every week, like I like doing, or it could take longer. Hope you all enjoy it, we both want to hear your thoughts.**

"The King and Queen of Corona would like to thank you for attending the celebration for the lost princess' eighteenth birthday and invite you and your... people to the welcome feast to be held later today." The attendant said as he led the Hairy Hooligan vikings from Berk down the castle hallway. He seemed nervous to have the half a dozen giant figures following him. Hiccup smiled wryly to himself, he didn't blame the man; they were a lot larger than normal citizens here, and their body odor was enough to make anyone nervous.

The attendant showed them the village's rooms and with a quick suggestion they use the facilities to freshen up before joining the welcoming feast, he was gone. "They're not so bad when you get to know them." Hiccup said as the poor man passed. He sighed and went into the room set aside for the chieftain and his son. Whoa. He stopped to observe the lavishly huge room. All this richness made him feel very out of place, it was so different from his small little village on Berk. "Remind me again why we came here?" He asked Stoick, his father, who was investigating the large wardrobe to the side.

"We are here to pay our respects to the king and queen here who lost their daughter almost eighteen years ago." Stoick said, still exploring the room.

"Okay, but why are we here. I mean, it's nice and all for them to invite us here, but we're Hooligans, not really fit for 'civilized' society." Hiccup tested the bed. "If you haven't noticed, we kind of stand out."

"All the neighboring kingdoms were invited to come, and as chieftain of Berk and the best representative of the vikings in the Barbaric Archipelago, we have to make an appearance. Plus, the day after will be a summit to discuss trading and treaties." Well, that made more sense. This would be a time for the kings and other leaders to renew trade agreements and make sure they won't all go to war and all; wouldn't want other countries to march on Berk with all its freezing cold winters and hard living and all those other perks. That was one of the reasons Stoick had decided to leave all of the dragons behind; to hide the fact that there was actually something cool up there. It didn't mean that Hiccup was happy that his best friend had to be left behind, but he could understand the reasons.

"I know you miss your friends and Toothless, but its only for a few days. Lets make a good impression and after the summit, we can go home." Stoic opened a door in the back and went in. "It looks like we wash up here. I'm going to go ahead and wash up first. Why don't you get settled in." And with that, the door closed.

"Make a good impression? If we wanted to do that we wouldn't have brought along Spitelout or Mildew." Hiccup complained to the now empty room. He sighed to himself again and went to the window. If it wasn't enough that he had to come along, His father had also brought along Spitelout, his uncle; and his cousin, Snotlout; and the villiage grump, Mildew. All of whom weren't on the best of terms with Hiccup. He still couldn't figure out why Mildew decided to come along anyway; he had just showed up as they were departing and declared he was going too to reaquaint himself with an old friend, he said.

He shook his head, and looked out onto the castle town. He had to admit, it was a very pretty kingdom. He opened the window and was greeted by a gust of cold air. "And, how is the wonderful kingdom of Corona?" He asked the summer night.

A husky laugh answered him from behind. "Let's just say there is a group of very happy kids having a snowball fight in the market place. The adults are going to wonder about that for a while." Hiccup turned to see Jack Frost lounging on the four-poster bed. "You know, I don't think this place has seen many snow days. It is farther south than I normally come. I could have some fun here.

Hiccup smiled wryly. "Don't cause too much trouble." He warned, "We're still guests here."

"Don't be such a worrywart; it's just a little snow here and there. And a couple ice patches. And some wicked frost designs in a few windows. It'll all melt soon anyway."

"Just keep in mind that this place doesn't get a lot of cold. That's all I'm saying." Hiccup left the window to sit on the bed next to his friend, the spirit of winter. "Hey, thanks for agreeing to come along on this trip. It sucks enough that Toothless and the other dragons couldn't come, I'm glad I could still have someone to talk to."

"What about Snotlout or Gobber?" Jack asked. "They're talkative enough." Hiccup made a face. "Haha. Yeah, they're not they best conversationalists."

"Yeah. Of all of my friends to get to come, it had to be Snotlout. I wouldn't even consider him a real friend. He's just my cousin."

"Plus he would be more interested in flirting with all the Corona maids than hanging out with his 'dear cuz'." They burst out laughing at that.

"What are ye laughing about son?" Stoick said, coming out of the bathing room. He didn't see Jack; Stoick was never one to believe old legends and stories.

"Nothing, dad."

Later, the attendant came back to fetch the viking visitors to the feast. Everyone had washed up and smelled a whole lot better. Down in the dining hall, Hiccup noticed about five or six different groups of royalty from different kingdoms. Never more did he feel more out of place than he did standing next to towering, big-boned men in a room filled with dainty princesses and regal princes.

They were shown to their seats; He sat next to his father and Gobber, and across the table sat Spitelout, Snotlout, and Mildew. The cranky old Viking gave Hiccup a look something akin to a glare mixed with a scowl. He hated Hiccup for discovering how to train the dragons and changing the whole viking way of life, or something like that.

The King and Queen of Corona made a short speech welcoming their royal guest and then let the feast began. The Hooligans dished themselves up with many foods laid out; at lot of them Hiccup didn't recognize. He tried many of the different delicacies and found that he liked a few of them. Four courses later, he was full and there was still desert. Before it could be served however the King and Queen made an announcement.

"My dear royal neighbors," the king said. "As you know, tomorrow is my lost daughter's eighteenth birthday. There will be festivities through the day that I encourage you all to participate in. As soon as the sun is down, we will start the lantern ceremony. The day after, we will meet to discuss treaties and trades as needed. Please enjoy yourselves and good night." After that the king and queen retired. Desert came and one by one the other royal family's retired with their entourages.

Jack joined the Hooligans as they left the great hall and walked next to Hiccup. "You should see this place." He said excitedly, "It's huge! You could get lost wandering through the hallways."

Hiccup didn't answer. The other vikings were within earshot and none of them, except for maybe Gobber could see Jack. Hiccup didn't want to get weird looks. Snotlout was walking right in front of him and complained about a sudden drop in temperature. Jack's cold influence did contrast a lot with the warm summer air. "I don't feel anything." Hiccup said. "It must be your imagination; it's way too warm here to feel cold. Maybe you just felt a draft." Jack laughed and blew a little more cold air down the hall to mess with the other young viking. Snotlout shivered and hurried on, mumbling about the cold and how it couldn't be just a draft. As Hiccup let out a little laugh at the joke, he heard a gasp behind him.

"I cannae believe it. I thought you were gone for the winter. What are yea doin' here?" It was a female voice with an accent that sounded a little thicker and slightly different from Stoick's. He turned to ask her what she meant and came face to face with a girl his age with a wild mane of red, curly hair. Her aqua blue eyes however, weren't looking at him; they were trained on the invisible-to-almost-everyone spirit of winter standing right next to him.


	2. The Red-Headed Princess

**A/N: So, here is the next one. hope you all enjoy it. Read and review ^-^**

"Are you... talking to me?" Hiccup asked the strange princess before him. The rest of the vikings had moved on down the hall, leaving Hiccup behind, and the rest of the hallway was otherwise deserted. Where had she come from? The dining hall? She couldn't be talking to Jack, could she?

"Why would I be talkin to yeauh?" The princess asked turning her blue eyes to him. "Ay'm talking to Jack Frost here, don'cha see 'im? Who are yeh anyway?"

Jack laughed and patted Hiccup on the back. "Of course Hiccup can see me. Its great to see you, Merida. How has been in ol' Scottland?"

She turned back to Jack. "Pretty good, pretty good. Mother and I had a little fight over the summer about gettin' married and that led to a wee little curse that turned Mum into a bear. Its all settled now though. We've never bin closer."

"Seems like I missed out on a lot; you'll have to tell me more about it sometime. I'm glad everything turned out alright, though. How're the 'little wee devils'?"

"Still gettin away with Everything. Ugh."

Jack laughed, he was obviously very familiar with this princess. He nudged Hiccup, "Taught them everything they know." Hiccup just stood awkwardly, feeling a little out of place as they talked about things he didn't know about.

"Hey, did Ay tell yeh that they've been learning archery too?'

"No way. That sounds pretty dangerous, you had better keep an eye on them so they don't poke someone's eye out."

"Thats what my Mum keeps saying, but Da' started teaching me at the same age."

"Will someone please tell me whats going on here?" Hiccup interjected. He was still trying to figure out how this red-head could see his invisible friend. Jack had told him that almost no one could see him, and yet here he was talking with this foriegn girl like she was an old friend.

Merida looked at Hiccup as if remembering that he was even there. Jack palmed his forehead. "Oh sorry," He said, "Hiccup, this is Princess Merida DunBroch of the Scottish Highlands. And Merida, this is Hiccup Horrendous Haddock the third of the Hairy Hooligan viking villiage from the Island of Berk." Hiccup instincively winced at his very long, very embarrassing full name. He had always hated that name. It didnt't help that the princess laughed.

"Hiccup Horrendous Haddock the third?" Merida was trying to hold back more laughs. "Hairy Hooligan? What kind of names are those?""The vikings believe that having a hideous name will frighten off gnomes and trolls. Mine isn't the worst of them believe it or not." She snorted at that. She didn't believe him, but it was true. Just take Snotlout's name for example. Or Mildew; Hiccup is mild compared to that.

"I feel sorry for the poor soul with the worst. Wha' is't?"

Hiccup thought for a second,. "Dogsbreath the Duhbrain. He also has an odor that makes actual dogs breath smell good."

"No, no. Midew is a much worse name. Nobody ever wants mildew to grow." Jack added. "Fishlegs is pretty bad. Who ever heard of a fish having legs." "Bucket." "Mulch."

"Ruffnut and Tuffnut" "Snotlout." "Gobber the Belch." Jack let out a big burp to emphasize the name.

Merida listened to the names and burst out laughing. Her laughter was infectious and Jack and Hiccup joined in too. Soon they were all gasping for breath. "I cannae believe... you have a... whole... village... full of people... with names... like that." Merida managed to say between breaths and laughter. She had to lean against the wall for support. "Dogsbreath? Mildew? Fishlegs?" She slid to the ground. Jack found her reaction extrememly funny and laughed harder. Hiccup calmed down after a few seconds, though. Those were wierd names by other countries standards, but they were normal for him. He had one of those names after all.

He noticed a woman coming up the hall, regal and stern in her features and looking displeased at the group. "Merida, a lady does not roll on the ground laughing hysterically. Get up now." Merida, mood changing immediately, gave out an exasperated sigh before getting back up. She stood in front of her mother who brushed off and straightened her dress. "Your father and I were wondering where you had gotten to. I see you made friends."

Merida nodded and gestured at Hiccup. "This is Hiccup of Berk. He's a viking. We were just talking about the names his people give each other. Someone's actually named Bucket!" She giggled, earning a look from her mother.

"It's nice to meet you, Hiccup." The woman said, "I am Queen Elinor from the Scottish Isles." The queen gave a perfect curtsy, then turned to her daughter. "Come, Merida. We have a busy day tomorrow and you'll need your sleep. Good night." She nodded toward Hiccup and walked off, leaving the trio behind.

Merida gave the boys and apologetic shrug. "Well, see yeh guys tomorrow. It was nice ta meet ya, Hiccup. Bye, Jack." And she was off, walking behind her mother, mass of red hair bouncing. At the end of the hallway she turned and gave a little wave before turning around the corner.

"She's really something, isn't she?" Jack asked when she was gone.

"Why didn't you tell me other people could see you?" Hiccup turned on Jack. "I was under the impression that I was the only one who could see you. I thought that was the reason you always hung around me all those years." He added quietly. Jack had acted so excited when he met Hiccup and found that Hiccup could see him. In fact, Jack had told Hiccup that no one had ever been able to see him until that day, five years ago. Hiccup couldn't help but feel a little hurt that his best friend had kept this a secret from him. Another believer is a big deal to the winter spirit. Why wouldn't he have shared?

Jack got defensive. "That isn't the reason I always came around." He said, "No- wait, it was at first." He paused, running his hand through his snow white hair, obviously uncomfortable. Hiccup just folded his arms and waited. "Look, you were my first friend. I'd never met anyone who could actually see me until you came to the woods that day and called out my name. It wasn't just that you were the only one who believed that I hung out with you. You were also cool and fun and my best friend."

"And what about Merida? Why didn't you tell me other people could see you?" Hiccup asked.

"I met her two years ago. She comes from another world. I didn't think you'd care that much to know about it. And you were kind of busy at the time, dealing with the dragons and all."

They stood there in an awkward silence for a moment, before Hiccup spoke up. "I guess I was kind of preoccupied. There was so much to do I kind of didn't see you a lot that winter."

Jack nodded. "So, we good?" He asked.

"We're good." Hiccup smiled. "Let's head back to the room."

When they reached the room, Jack said good night and left to go do his winter work around the world. He didn't have much to do since it was technically summer for most of the world, but there were still places he needed to visit. Inside the suite, Hiccup found Stoick asleep in one of the beds. Apparently he didn't want to wait up for his son. Hiccup went to bed himself, still reeling with the encounter with the Scottish Princess who could also for some reason see his best friend. Before he knew it, he was asleep, exhausted by the day's events.


	3. Tangled Plots

Jack flew through the corridor until he found a window. It was open to let in the summer breeze, which was too warm in Jack's opinion, but, then again, everything here was. "Let's go for a ride." He said to the wind as he jumped out of the castle. The wind answered his call and lifted him into the night. Jack let out a laugh of exhilaration at the freedom of being in the night air, it was an amazing feeling that he never got tired of. Actually, it was one of the few perks of being what he was; the invisible spirit of winter. He was lucky to have found Merida and Hiccup, who, in his whole life, are the only two who have ever seen him. Why? It was a mystery he never could figure out. He looked at the moon, the all-knowing, un-speaking entity sitting in the sky who had given him a life and name all those years ago, but never anything more.

He perched on the roof of some building and looked up into the night sky. "Who am I?" He asked, as he did almost every night. "Why give me a life where nobody but those few can see me?" The moon didn't answer, it never did. He turned in frustration and a glimmer of light caught his eye. "Right on time, Sandman." He gave a little smile.

Ribbons of golden dust were spreading out across the night sky, tendrils of light gliding into the windows of the castle town's children. Jack loved this time of night, the golden streams of dream dust from the Sandman came to the sleeping children even here. They lit up the sky in a dazzling a pattern. Jack reached up to a strand that passed over his head and a dream dragon materialized from it, followed by a bear who pounced playfully on the dragon. They both tussled in a friendly fight before becoming part of the stream again.

When it was all dark and quiet again, Jack lifted off of the roof and flew around, exploring the city by night. A few frozen fountains would be found come morning, thanks to Jack's mischief, but it'd all melt quickly once the sun came up. He found himself flying through the trees in the forest letting loose more of his frost on the foliage. He probably should go and bring winter to the few areas that were in the season for it, but something was stopping him. He felt like there was something he needed to do here in Corona. Something that was calling to him. Jack shrugged the feeling off. There was mischief he could go cause in Russia, which had a little snow on the ground in some of the more northern, high altitude areas.

He flew out of the trees and was about to go north when he noticed a golden light below. It wasn't like a campfire light. That was next to it. His first thoughts were that it was more of Sandy's dream sand, but that had already come and passed. But it acted a lot like it, the way it spread out in a looping fashion. Curious, Jack dropped closer to get a better look. He could hear a female voice softly singing and, from what he could see from the light was that there were two figures at the center of it all.

When he was close enough to see, he realized that it wasn't like the dream sand at all, in fact the light looked like it was coming from a girl's head. Like it was her hair. Except that there was a lot of it. No real person could have that much hair, could they? And not only was it spread all around the clearing, but it was also glowing.

"Bring back what once was mine, what once was mine." The girl's song came to an end and the hair stopped glowing. Jack was perched on a tree branch nearby and watched as the other person, a man unwrapped some of that hair from around his hand looking really freaked out. He was about to yell when the girl hurriedly stopped him. "Please, don't freak out."

Jack laughed out loud at poor guys reaction. He'd be kind of freaked out too if that was him sitting there. He wondered what the glowing hair had did to the guys hand. Poor sap probably wasn't used to magic. The guy put his hands under his arms and rocked back and forth, visibly trying to keep calm. "I'm not freaking out, are you freaking out? No, I'm just very interested in your hair and the magical qualities that it possesses. How long has it been doing that exactly?"

"Uh. Forever, I guess? Mother says that when I was a baby, people tried to cut it. They wanted to take it for themselves." The girl reached back and pulled her hair back. Jack could just see a small strand of short brown hair. "But, once it's cut, it turns brown and loses its power."

Jack heard a small rustling a little distance away, and some faint voices. Was someone else here spying? He was kind of starting to feel like he was intruding on this moment, and he couldn't even be seen. He left the two strangers and went to investigate. A good hundred yards away and he found a woman wearing a dark cloak talking with two tall, muscular red heads. "Now, I'm going to go and talk my daughter. If she won't come back with me then I'm going to give her the crown. I know that she will give it back to Rider and he will in turn give it back to you. That's when you can get your revenge. For now, however, we need to be patient."

Jack sat back reeling. That woman was the girl with the glowing hair's mother? And she was plotting with these thugs for revenge? One of the other two spoke up. "How do you know Rider will give it back? He could take the crown and disappear."

The woman looked toward the campsite of the other two. "Just look at him, he's already in love. He'll give the crown back, just take my word. By tomorrow night, you'll have gotten your revenge, the crown back and the magical hair." The men looked please at that. Anger boiled up in Jack and he froze the ground beneath one of the thugs who slipped and fell with a thud, causing the other to shush him. Jack wanted to be able to do something else. Something to prevent the three from their whole revenge agenda or keep them from hurting the two in any way. He felt useless though. He couldn't warn the two, that Rider guy, or the girl with the hair. They wouldn't be able to see or hear him. He couldn't freeze the group themselves to stop them in their tracks; he was never able to use his powers directly on living creatures for some reason, just the areas around them. He couldn't even physically stop the woman from approaching the campsite, she just walked right through him with a shiver.

Frustrated, Jack flew back to the castle town. Maybe he could somehow get the guards to go into the forest and see what was going on. He tried to get the ones guarding the bridge to the castle but they only complained about a draft to each other. He tried to get the wind to carry off one of their helmets, but those were attached to the guards heads by chin straps. Unheard. Unseen. Useless. There were two love birds in the forest with magical glowing hair and about to be tricked into a plot for revenge that will hurt both of them. And he couldn't do anything to stop the woman and the thugs behind it all. Jack flew off to an isolated part of the forest and let out his frustration and anger in full, throwing ice and frost out in big bursts only to have everything start melting immediately. His powers were weaker here in this summers land.

Needing to feel stronger, he asked the wind to take him north. He found himself in a high altitude mountainous area. There were still patches of snow on the ground and he frosted the ground. By morning, all the towns in the area had a fresh layer of frost on every surface and every source of water was frozen by about an inch.

Feeling only slightly better, Jack flew back to Corona. He couldn't do anything about the Rider guy or the woman in the cloak, but he did promise to spend time with Hiccup while he was there, and there was Merida to catch up with. Maybe they could get his mind off of last night.


	4. Castle Town Part 1

**A/N: Sorry for the delay, to make up for it, two chapters at once. Hope you all enjoy.**

**Quick timeline. This takes place about five years after How to Train Your Dragon. Hiccup met Jack the winter after the fight with the green/red death. This also happens the summer after Brave, so a couple months later. Merida is 18 and met Jack when she was 16. This is of course happening during the Tangled movie, and Jack's movie hasn't happened yet. It's actually more like a parallel universe to the Rise of the Guardians story so things will be changing along those lines.**

**There ya go.**

The next morning, Hiccup was on his way to the dining hall when Jack joined him. The winter spirit seemed almost sullen and distracted, instead of his usual happy and joking nature. Worried, Hiccup asked him what was wrong but Jack just shrugged and shook his head. "Nothing, I can do." He said. Hiccup couldn't get him to say anything more.

Bothered by his friend's behaivior, Hiccup tried to distract him by talking about the rumors he heard the maids whispering about in the halls. "I heard that there has been a strange, icy, phenomenon affecting the town's fountains. There was a maid in one of the hallways talking about how the one in the back courtyard looks like a frozen statue of water." He looked at his friend. "She called it a beautiful miracle." That brought a smile to Jack.

"I froze about five of them last night while I was wandering around." He laughed. "I bet people will be talking about that all day, too bad it'll all melt soon. Ooh. I also went to some mountain village way north. By the time I was done there, the whole place was covered in my frost." He fell silent again as he remembered the reason he went up there in the first place; to let loose all his furstration at not being able to do anything last night. Hiccup just looked worriedly at his friend, but fell silent too.

They soon reached the dining hall and within moments the red-head, Merida, was there. "Come sit wi' me, Jack." she said, grabbing a hold of his hand and pulling, "I've got to tell ya' about what happened this summer."

Jack looked back as he was pulled away. "You coming Hic?"

Hiccup, relieved to not be left out smiled and was about to follow when Stoick called from behind. "Aye, Hiccup. O'er here, lad." The rest of the vikings had chosen a seat in the opposite direction Merida was pulling Jack. Caught between his people and his friend, he hesitated before going over to the vikings. He gave an apologetic shrug to Jack as he turned. It would have been difficult to explain to the others why he was going to sit with a scottish princess he only met briefly last night, instead with his own people. That was what he told himself at least. In truth, he felt a little on the outs when it came to Jack's other friend. He still felt a little betrayed that his friend hadn't told him.

Over at the vikings table, Hiccup could see Jack sitting with Merida, listening as she talked, her arms gesturing wildly as she told a story. She sat a little apart from the rest of her group, who looked like they were listening to a different story being told by a big man; almost as big as Stoick, Hiccup noticed. He reognized the queen from last night, Queen Elinor, sitting next to the man, who must have been Merida's father.

Eventually, breakfast was finished and the vikings split up to go to their various activites. Stoick and Gobber went to confer with the King and the other royal leaders who were visiting. Mildew and Spitelout went off to who knew where, and Snotlout went off to flirt with the castletown maidens. Jack was still by Merida's table. "Guess I'm on my own." He said out loud, to nobody in particular. He started heading toward the main castle entrance.

He was almost to the door when he felt a cold gust of wind behind him. "Hey, wait up Hic." Jack called. Hiccup turned to see Jack flying down the hall, leaving gusts of wind and a frost on the walls in his wake; and Merida, running behind him in a dark blue dress, her hair still a wild mane of red curls. Hiccup stopped and waited for the other two to catch up.

"Ya could 'ave waited for us." Merida said, slightly breathless. "Now we can all go tae town together." A second later, she was already out the door, guards saluting her as she passed through the doors to the outside.

Hiccup and Jack exchanged a look before hurrying after her. "Sorry, I just figured you two would be too busy catching up, and all." Hiccup said when they were all together. "I didn't want to feel like a third wheel and all." He trailed off.

Merida looked at him with something akin to horror. "Third wheel? Oh no, no, no, no. It's nae like tha' at all. Jack and I are jus' friends. Tha's all. I only wanted to tell him abou' what happened a few months back . Ya see, me mum wanted tae marry me off to one of the other clan's sons. I di'nt want to be married so I accidentaly unleashed this ancient bear curse that almost killed my mum."

"Whoah." Was all Hiccup to think to say at that story. "An ancient bear curse, huh?"

"Uh huh. And we also managed to kill the daemon bear, Mor'du, who had also been cursed thousands of years ago."

"Wow." Hiccup wasn't sure whether to write this off as a tall tale, or actually believe the girl about the curse and ancient demons. then again, his best friend was an invisible winter spirit and at home he ran a dragon training academy with his pet nightfury. Yeah, maybe she was telling the truth.

"I still can't believe you'd do that to your own mom. I'm just glad you guys seem close again after all that." Jack said, lacing his fingers behind his head as he walked between them. "I mean, you tried to physically change her to get out of marriage and suddenly everything between you two are all huncky-dory."

"Ya, I guess spending time in the forest, away from the castle and the all the rules and restrictions, allowed us to get tae know each other again."

"So what happened to this Mor'du guy?" Hiccup asked. "You said that he was cursed thousands of years ago? Why was he still alive?"

"We think tha' the witches curse kept him like that. It gave him the strength of ten men but not the soul of one. He wandered the forest for years as a menace. Took ma da's leg when I was a wee girl."

"Your dad lost his leg?" He looked down at where his leg used to be, before he lost it almost five years ago. Since then he had modified his prosthetic leg to be able to do almost anything a real one could. He was still a little limited when it came to running or hiking, but it made riding Toothless easier.

Merida noticed his metal foot, poking out of his trousers. "Oh! Wha happened to it?" She asked, kneeling down to get a better look.

"I lost it years ago in a.. fire." He said simply. Leaving out the part about almost falling to his death after causing the Green Death to crash into the earth amid its own inferno. He needed to be careful to not mention Toothless or any of the other dragons. His father didn't want other kingdoms to know that they have figured out how to train them and keep them as pets instead of endlessly fighting them.

The three was silent for a while as they continued walking. They were passing through a residential area near the castle courtyard and people were already about and attending to their morning business. After a while, Hiccup finally spoke up. "So, how did you guys meet?"

Jack and Merida exchanged a glance. "Two years ago, I was doing my rounds in Scottland, flying through the forest when I heard someone calling out my name. I investigated and came face to face with this crazy redhead who was wandering the forest calling out my name. I was pretty surprised when I found out that she could see me, too."

"Maudie, one of our maids, was complaining about the cold an' she blamed Jack Frost, saying that he 'ad come early this year or something. I knew spirits like the Will-o-the-Wisps existed so I figured that Jack Frost may be real too. I had gone out to try and find him and I saw a bit o' blue pass by and I knew he was real." Merida explained. "Since then we've been friends, but Jack only comes around every couple weeks in the winter."

"Its too warm in the Summer, mostly I stick to the poles or the Northern Islands during that time. I only came to Corona to keep Hic company and because I was curious what it was like down here." Jack patted Hiccup on the back as he talked. "Totally worth it so far, though the heat is a bit uncomfortable."

Hiccup smiled. Those were the months that Jack spent at Berk. There was a very short summer season and a long, cold winter. Like, nine months of winter usually. During the short summer, Jack usually wandered around, visiting other areas and bringing frost and cold to different time zones. He was almost glad now that he knew Jack had someone else to visit with during those months. He was also a little jealous, but now getting to know Merida a little better, she seemed alright.


	5. Castle Town Part 2

The group continued on through the castletown, taking in the sights. They passed assorted shops and went in to browse a couple. Merida got excited when she saw a bow and arrow display in a weapon shops window and wanted to go in. It wasn't a big shop, but the weaponry there were styled differently than at Berk. Hiccup noticed there was hardly any of the brute weapons favored by the vikings; like clubs and maces. There was hardly a full shelf of them and only the basic froms of the weapons were present. The store had a bigger selection of swords, daggers, and bows. Jack noticed the staves section and was looking at the different styles, comparing to his own staff. "Who knew they could be used as a a blunt weapon," He said "Mine is better for channeling my powers though."

Merida went to look at the arrows, which from her excited chatter Hiccup figured had a variety of ranges and flight patterns based off of the wood and fletching or something. Arrows weren't commonly used on Berk, so he didn't know much about the dynamics of archery techniques even though he apprenticed in the weapons shop. Hiccup himself wandered the store, stopping to look at accessories and attachments. He had always enjoyed looking at the mechanics that went into helping improve aim or power of tools.

Eventually they left the store and continued down the main lane. Merida had considered getting a new quiver of arrows, but didn't want to carry them around all day. As they walked they talked a little bit about the different weapon preferences from their home kingdom. Hiccup talked about the favoritism of hammers, axes, and bare hands when it came to fighting. Merida bragged about how she was the best archer in the kingdom and how swords and maces were common on the training grounds. "Does your villiage end up fighting a lot?" She asked, "Ya sound like you've seen yeour fair share of kingdom is a peace but there are competitions at the yearly games."

"When I was younger there was a lot of fighting. Raids and attacks that we've had to combat frequently, almost every day actually. There hasn't been many attacks since we've... made that peace treaty." Hiccup caught himself from mentioning how they had trained the dragons to be friends instead of major pests. Now they only had to worry about invaders or those who want the dragons for themselves.

"Wow, that must have been exciting. And maybe a bit scary, too." Merida said, eyes shining with the thought.

Hiccup shrugged. "It was a little bit. How many dr- opponents you defeat gave you status and popularity. I was never allowed to fight because I was so-" He gestured to himself, "Small. But I was apprenticed to the weapons master for years, so I got my fair share."

Jack his arm around Hiccups shoulders as he remembered the time when he was considered useless and troublesome. He hadn't known Hiccup until the winter after, but he knew how Hiccup felt about his size in comparison to the other vikings. "And look at what you've achieve since then." He said with a smile.

Hiccup smiled back at his friend. It was true; since those years of fighting dragons, Hiccup had trained a dragon, figured out the reason for their constant raids, opened up a dragon training academy, and basically changed the way of life for the citizens of Berk forever. And all that was five years ago.

Merida looked at them, their deep friendship reminding her that Hiccup had been Jack's friend much longer than hers. "How did you two meet, anyhoo? I know hardly any can see ya, Jack."

Jack and Hiccup exchanged a look. Hiccup had first come across Jack while flying Toothless one day. Toothless had sensed the winter spirits presence and gave chase. Since Hiccup couldn't see what was making the dragon act wierd, he had decided to do some research to figure it out. Hiccup couldn't find anything that could have caused Toothless to go crazy and had pushed the incident to the back of his mind. A few days later, Gobber had complained about the cold and made an off-hand comment about Jack Frost being in town. Curious, Hiccup began to look into who Jack Frost was and while talking to Toothless about how Jack Frost apparently was the bringer of winter and cold winds, he had heard a scoffing laugh and turned to see Jack Frost himself perched on his staff and listening in on the conversation. Toothless hadn't liked Jack at first, but once Hiccup could see the spirit and they became friends, the dragon warmed up to him.

Hiccup couldn't talk about the nightfury's influence in their friendship so he just told Merida about how he had heard the name, done some research what was know about him and by talking about him had suddenly been able to see him.

"I sometimes hear my name being passed around as a phrase and I stopped to listen to Hiccup talk about me. Boy, was I surprised when he heard me laugh and turned to actually see me." Jack added. "It was the first time I have ever met a person who didn't look right through me. It was the best feeling ever to have a real friend to talk to." Jack had lived a long time without anyone being able to see him, so to just come across a boy who happened to be talking about him and then see him was almost magical. He thanked the moon for Hiccup's friendship, and Merida's too.

A while later, they had visited other stores briefly and had made it almost to the bottom of the castletown's main road. By then it was about lunchtime and they considered getting something to eat. Hiccup volunteered to get some pastries from a vender nearby. Jack and Merida retreated to the shade while they waited. With the sun now at full force, it was a bit to warm for Jack's comfort. It was cooler in the shade and Jack's presence made the area drop ten degrees. Some of the people nearby noticed and enjoyed the relief from the heat as well, sighing in the cool break from the sun. Jack noticed a cluster of wanted posters nearby and investigated. One of the wanted men looked vaguely familiar, but he couldn't tell from where. "WANTED DEAD OR ALIVE." The poster read. "Flynn Rider, Thief." Flynn Rider... Flynn Rider. Had he heard that name before? No. Probably just heard it among the voices of the townspeople as he was flying about yesterday. He shrugged off the nagging feeling of familiarity and turned his attention to Hiccup who was returning with three pastries in his hand. Merida had found a small bench in the shade and they sat down to eat.

"Wha's that over there?" Merida asked a minute or two later, pointing toward a section of street that had colorful patches on the ground.

"I don't know," Hiccup said, craning his head to see better. There were adults standing around, blocking his view, but what he could see were some kids on the ground drawing. "Chalk?" He wondered.

Jack flew up to see and came down a second later amid a gust of wind. "Its a chalk drawing activity. There are some really cool pictures there, too."

"Ooh." Merida smiled and wiped her hands on her dress, having finished the pastry. "Let's go check it out." Hiccup finished his own pastry and trailed behind as the other two checked out the drawings. Jack stayed on the ground, careful not to blow any of the chalk away. Hiccup admired the drawings too, the little kids working on them were having a lot of fun. It reminded him of the time Toothless had tried drawing in the dirt. It was a mess of squiggles but the dragon had been proud of it, getting angry if Hiccup stepped on any of the lines and messing it up. Hiccup smiled at the memory. He found Merida and Jack at an empty space of concrete where Merida had secured a basket of the colorful chalk.

"Come and draw, Hiccup." Merida invited, gesturing to a space next to hers. Hiccup hesitated but decided to join in. Jack tried to draw too; a picture of the moon, but whatever he drew wouldn't show up on the street. After a few tries he put the chalk down and watched what his friends were drawing. Hiccup's was a picture of Toothless flying against a blue sky, and Merida was drawing a bear on all fours wearing a crown against a green forest background. It was like the dream sand creatures Jack had seen last night. It made him happy to see his two best and only friends together like that.

When Merida finished her bear she looked over at Hiccup's picture. "A dragon? I've 'eard stories about those and how they ravage villages."

"I like to think that dragons are intelligent and gentle creatures." Hiccup responded, finishing up his own drawing. His hands were covered with the chalk he was using. He looked over to Merida's bear. "Why does it have a crown?"

"Its my mum, when I accidentally cursed her this summer. My dad is kind of known as the Bear Kings, and the bear is our house sigil."

"Hey guys, come look at this drawing." Jack called from little ways off. He had wandered to look better at some of the other pictures. Hiccup and Merida came to investigate and found a large drawing of the gold Corona Sun surrounded by happy people in purple. It was incredibly detailed and others were admiring it. The artist didn't look to be nearby, but the sun was still impressive to see. They stood admiring the pictures for a while before moving on.


	6. Castle Dance

**A/N: Okay, sorry about the long wait. Things have been happening and this got pushed to the side. No more. Remember, I'm not writing this, a friend is... I'm just posting it. Hope you enjoy it all. Read and review.**

It was late afternoon when they heard the music. A fiddle and a flute started playing in the distance and soon after laughter and clapping hands could be heard. Curious, the viking, the princess, and the winter spirit went to investigate. There, in the castle town village square, a dance had started, the people whirling about in lines and leaping and clapping. They looked like they were having fun and even the crowd that had gathered around the edges were enjoying themselves.

"Let's join in!" Merida suggested. She looked toward Hiccup and Jack, bouncing in eagerness.

"I don't know, Merida." Hiccup hedged. "I don't really know the dances here. And I'm not really good at dancing in general, I mean, in Berk dancing is only done at rare events and there aren't-"

"Oh, come on!" She grabbed Hiccup's hand and tried to pull him into the whirling dance, but he dug in his feet. Hiccup had never been very coordinated and had avoided dancing as much as he could in the few yearly festivals that included dancing in the activities at Berk. Astrid had tried for years to teach him but gave up eventually.

"You go ahead." He said, pulling his hand free. "I'll just watch over here with Jack."

"Oh no you don't." Jack said. "You know I'd join in if I could and I'm not letting you sit on the sidelines using me as an excuse." He nudged Hiccup from behind and succeeded in pushing him into the crowd. Within moments the dance had caught up Hiccup as someone or another grabbed him and pulled him along. Merida joined in too, with a laugh, dancing from partner to partner and picking up the steps to the dance quickly.

Jack sat back in the shade and watched his friends dance. As soon as Hiccup found the rhythm he seemed to enjoy himself. Jack couldn't help but feel a twinge of jealousy at how they could to do things like dance and draw while he was invisible and intangible most of the time. It was true that there were some things that he was able to do that no one else could that were awesome, but... it looked like fun to be able to dance like that.

Over to the side he noticed a girl with long, braided blonde hair gesture to a man standing off to the side to join in. They looked familiar. The man shook his head no, but the horse he was standing next to nudged him in, like what Jack did with Hiccup. Jack laughed at the look the man gave the horse before being pulled off by one of the dancers. The horse snickered too, then looked toward the frost spirit. Jack stopped laughing, startled by scrutiny.

"You can see me too, huh?" He moved closer. There was a medallion on the horse's front with the Corona insignia and a name. "Maximus, huh? Interesting name for a horse." The horse snorted and made an indignant face. Jack laughed again. This was one character of a horse. Not many had as many facial expressions or a wild personality like this. Merida's horse, Angus, had a personality as well but he was more like the good listener and caring type. This horse was fiery and animated. "I like you, Maximus." He said. Maximus snorted and nudged him. Jack took it as a sign that the horse liked him back.

His attention turned back to the dance as the tempo increased and the fiddle could be heard soloing over the other instruments playing. He saw his Hiccup pass by, clumsily leaping along with the others but still enjoying himself, caught up in the music. He noticed the blonde girl again, her hair was really long. Braided it was about the same length of Queen Elinor's hair. He could just imagine what it would be like completely down...

Wait a minute. He looked closer. Could it be her? From last night in the forest? The girl with the ridiculously long hair that glows? It was dark last night, but that face, it was familiar. No, it couldn't be. What about the woman and the plot for revenge? Why would she be here in the castle town? Maximus looked toward and snickered questioningly, sensing a change in Jack's mood as he watched the girl.

"Huh?" Jack looked back at the horse, who raised his eyebrows in a question. What's wrong? "Oh, nothing." Jack shook of his confusion. "I just felt as if I have seen that girl," He pointed. "somewhere before. Last night in the forest." What had that woman and those two thugs done last night, then? There was something about a revenge plot... He tried to think about the conversation he had heard last night. There was something about a crown. The woman was planning to give the girl a crown who was then going to give it the guy. Then the woman and the thugs would take their revenge, right? And now those two were here in the town; that meant he still had time to warn them! "I just have to figure out a way to let them know." He muttered that last to himself. Maximus shook his mane as if to say, I have no idea what you're talking about. Jack just shrugged.

The music started rising in a fast climax and with a final note ended. The dancers all spun one last time and ended facing a partner as the last note rang out. Jack noticed that Hiccup had ended with the blonde girl, and Merida with the man the Maximus had pushed into the dance. That must have been the man from last night, Rider or whatever.

Hiccup was breathless when he ended the dance and smiling broadly. It was fun, even though he had kept stumbling. There was so many steps and lines that eventually he had given up trying to copy everybody and just followed the flow. Why had he kept putting off Astrid all those years? Well, dancing was kind of different in Berk. A lot different, actually. Most of the dances included everyone in the village holding hands in a circle and moving three steps one way and one step the opposite way. Everyone had to move at the same time in order for the dance to move in rhythm or they would bump into their neighbors. There were also dances with more complicated steps and rhythms that he could never pick up, and dances in which partners circled each other with one hand touching then move back in lines then meet again. It was all confusing and structured mainly around the right steps and patterns. Here it seemed more free and flowing and fun. This dance was more about the fun of movement than the need to get the steps in synch with the others.

He looked at the girl he had ended the dance with; a pretty blonde with long braided hair laced with flowers and a wearing a purple dress. He let go of her hands and looked down shyly. She wasn't wearing any shoes. Dumbly he pointed them out to her. "Where are your shoes?"

"Oh, um..." The girl looked down at her feet, as if unaware that they were bare while everyone else's were shod. "I've never worn any. Well, except during the winter when it gets too cold to go without socks." She noticed his own feet. "Your leg." She noticed, tilting her head to the side to get a better look at it, her hair almost touching the ground.

"Yeah. It's mechanical, I know. I'm Hiccup, by the way." He held out his hand to distract her attention from his foot. It made him kind of uncomfortable talking about it.

"Rapunzel." She shook it. "Thats a funny name."

"Yeah, I know."

Merida let out a joyful laugh after the dance. It was amazing. The style was different than the dances back home. It was more fun as the country style dances the castle would do on feast days. Those dances usually paired off into couples and groups and skipping and circling each other. The other style of dancing, the Highland dance, was awful. It was supposed to be a competitive style, just her leaping and dancing in boring, repetitive patterns. Her mum had put her in lessons when she was young and she hated how boring it was, so structured and with no freedom of excitement anywhere. That was why she preferred the country dances, and she absolutely loved this one. It was free and flowing and the people all moved together instead of in sections. She wanted another dance to start up but the people around her were scattering, chatting with friends and going back to their businesses.

"Well that was fun." The man she had ended with dropped her hands and began looking around. "Now where did Blondie go?"

"Well, nice dancin' wi' yeh, too." Merida said sarcastically as he began to wander off. The nerve of the guy, not even a hello. He just dropped her hands like they were contagious and walked off. He could have at least said something to her, given his name, asked for hers, made friends. She made a face behind his back, then turned her attention towards looking for Hiccup and Jack. She spotted Hiccup first, talking with a girl. She made her way through the crowd toward him and noticed in her peripheral that the man was moving, too. He must have found whoever it was he dismissed her so rudely to find. They ended up approaching the other couple together.

"Rapunzel!" The guy called. The girl next to Hiccup turned and smiled and waved when she saw the guy.

"Hi, Flynn! Wasn't that fun?"

"Fun enough. Dancing isn't really my thing, though."

"Hey, Merida." Hiccup said, noticing the redhead behind Flynn.

"Hey, Hiccup." She was miffed that the guy had followed her to the same place she was going on top of ignoring her after the dance. It wasn't that she found him attractive or interesting. Or that she wanted to talk to him after the dance. She was just upset that he had dropped her hands and then walked away from her like she was nothing. She was a princess for goodness sake. People didn't just ignore her and walk away. "Where's Jack?" She said, pointedly ignoring the blonde and the rude one next to her.

Hiccup looked around. "I don't know, wasn't he over th- aha. There." He pointed towards a shock of white hair moving through the crowd, a white horse walking right next to him. The people Jack Frost passed shivered and sighed at the cold air that touched their skin in the spirits wake. He waved a hello and the the horse gave a friendly whinny. Rapunzel and Flynn turned to the horse in welcome.

"Maximus!" Rapunzel exclaimed and rubbed his nose fondly.

Merida and Hiccup looked at Jack questioningly. Why was he with a horse that seemed friendly with the couple that they had group up with. They couldn't voice their questions without Flynn or Rapunzel noticing. "The horse can see me. He's cool." Jack said, simply, guessing at his friends thoughts. A mischievous glint crept into his eyes. "I think he may actually have more personality than Toothless. And he's definitely way better than, Angus, Merida."

"Angus is one o' the best horses yeh can find anywhere. Don't beah comeparing 'im tae other horses." Merdia burst. Offended and angry she pointed a finger at him, then became aware of the startled stares from the people and horse around her. She put her hand behind her back and stood straighter with a fake smile on her face. "I was jus'- He- Tha's a fine horse ye have there." She tried to cover up her embarrassment, but failed. Jack burst out laughing, and Merida glared at him before looking down. She realized too late that Jack had only been goading her to talk to him in public like that.

Hiccup had managed to keep his tongue about Toothless, realizing just in time that Jack was teasing. There was no personality that could compare to Toothless', which could be compared like to that of a cat in other kingdoms. And Jack always enjoyed watching Toothless' antics and playing. He too stared at Merida is surprise at her out burst, then had to bite his tongue from laughing at her attempts to cover it up. Even the horse found it funny.

Rapunzel and Flynn just looked at her like she was crazy at first. Then, seeing her embarrassment Rapunzel approached her and took her hands and gave her a smile. Merida looked up and smiled back; everything was alright. "What's your name?" The blonde asked. "I'm Rapunzel. And this is Eu- Flynn and Maximus." She gestured to the thief and the horse. Flynn nods and Maximus whinnies in greeting.

"We've met." Merida scowls at Flynn, "Ayh'm Merida." The girls then launch into a conversation of compliments of dresses and hair and other such topics. The guys stood there dumfounded for a second at the interaction, barely following what they were talking about and having nothing to input. Awkwardly Flynn reached up to scratch the back of his head, Hiccup shuffled his feet, and Jack and Maximus just stared.

To break the silence, Hiccup reached out a hand to introduce himself to the other. "I'm Hiccup."

"Nice to meet you. Um, interesting friend you have there. Does she... burst out randomly at nothing like that...often?" He shook his hand and eyed Merida warily.

"I couldn't really tell you." Hiccup admitted. "I only met her for the first time last night, via mutual friend. From what I could tell though she's pretty excitable."

"Gotcha."

The sun was going down and suddenly everyone realized that the ceremony was starting soon. "To the boats!" Someone from the crowd called out.

The girls stop talking and turn back to the group. Rapunzel looked both excited and nervous; she put her hands to her face and stood frozen. "Its almost time." She whispered to herself. This was something that she had wanted to see for a long time and now she was about to fullfill her dream.

Flynn took her hand. "Come with me." He said, "I want to show you something." He began to draw her away toward the docks, where others were boarding ships, Maximus following behind. Rapunzel turned for a second to wave at Merida and Hiccup before going along.

"It was nice to meet you."


	7. Golden Lanterns

**A/N: So, here is another chapter for you guys. Hope you enjoy it. I really did. **

"Well, should we go back to the castle, or find a good place to watch the lanterns.?" Hiccup asked, casting a glance towards the palace. Before either Jack or Merida could answer, he heard a familiar voice call out his name.

"Hey, Hiccup. Enjoying Corona?" It was Snotlout, coming towards him with his arms around two pretty Corona maids. "I'm going back to the castle with these pretties for the best view of lights." He casts an appraising look at Merida. "You're invited to come with your friend if you want." He tickled one of the girls and she giggled and kissed him on the cheek. He had always been a player, flirting with all the girls. As he got older he became more suave and during ambassador visits he would always find a local girl or two to hang on his arm until he left for home. It usually ended in a few broken hearts by the girls he enchanted. Hiccup found it disgusting.

"No thanks, Snotlout." He responded. "We were planning to see it from the lake." There was no way they were going up to the castle now, not with his cousin there.

Snotlout just winked and walked off. "See you later, then." He said.

Hiccup gave an apologetic look to Merida. "Sorry. We don't have to go to the boats if you don't want to. I just didn't want to go the same way he was. He gets pretty bad sometimes You should see the way he acts around girls.. Well, actually, you shouldn't, it's bad."

Merida made a face. "He seems awful. Aye feel sorry for yeh. The boats sound good. Let's hurry." Jack agreed and they hurried towards the docks. The big boats were crowded when they got there, however, and going onboard with Jack would have been awkward, so they rented on of the smaller boats. They noticed a few others on the lake and Maximus standing over to the sides of the docks, eating some apples. He snickered a hello as the group passed by and Jack waved back.

"That is one interesting horse." He said as Maximus sat on his haunches and looked out across the lake. "Almost like a dog." That made Merida laugh. Hiccup smiled, Jack once compared Toothless to a cat. He wondered how the two would get along.

Soon they were near the center of the lake. Hiccup and Merida rowing, Jack walking along the side freezing the water where he walked. He helped push the boat along at first but it kept getting caught in the ice. He eventually gave up and let them row.

"Yeh can get in, you know." Merida said, patting the bench next to her.

"I don't want you guys to get to cold, now that the sun's down." He said as the ice grew around his feet.

"Don't be silly. It's still warm out, you'll be fine to sit with us. Its not like we're strangers to cold anyway." Hiccup added. Merida moved over on the bench and Jack jumped in. He barely rocked the boat with the addition of his weight; one of the benefits of being a spirit with command of the wind. He sat back and looked up at the stars. The sun had fully gone down and it was completely dark. The only light was that from the moon right above them. They sat back and waited for the lanterns to start. All three were excited to be a part of this special celebration and to see this extraordinary event. Not every kingdom cebrates a lost princess' eighteenth birthday with a dazzling display of thousands of lanterns let loose into the sky in hopes that one day she will come home. It also isn't often that the leaders of surrounding kingdoms were invited to attend such an event.

It was taking a long time for the lights to start and the three started to get impatient. To pass the time Jack froze designs in the water then watch them melt in the warm night. "This is taking so long." He complained after the seventh drawing had melted. "I'm going to go see what's taking them so long." He called the wind up to carry him towards the palace, leaving his friends in the boat. "I'll be right back."

He was above the castle town when he saw the first lantern. It floated up, a single light against a dark castle backdrop. Then suddenly like embers coming to life, more lights appeared and spread along the streets. It was beautiful, watching the glow of golden lights fill the castle town. He flew back to the boat to watch with his friends, weaving between the first few lanterns floating up as he went. By the time he got back to the boat the sky was filled with the lights. Soon there were lanterns over the lake, too. Some floated right above the surface and some passed in front of the moon. The effect of them against the stillness of the lake made it feel like the whole boat was flying among thousands of golden firefly lanterns.

Merida gasped in wonder as she stared mesmerized at the beauty. It was breathtaking. Hiccup saw a lantern floating near the boat and gave it a push upward. Jack flew around the boat, winding his way around and between the lanterns and sending them whirling along little gusts of winds. He looked downward at the boat. He was glad that he could spend this night with his two best and only friends. He was also grateful that Hiccup had invited him along on this trip. He could only imagine himself wandering the world leaving frost on the northern cities lawns or whatever like he normally did this time of year. Summers were usually boring for him. This summer, however, was shaping up to be pretty awesome. He laughed and started chasing one of lights. His friends cheered when he caught it.

Soon the golden glow on the lake started to dim as the lights went out one by one. Eventually they were left in just the light of the moon, dark compared to the dazzling experience just minutes before. Back in the boat they floated on the lake and just talked about the lights and the castle town and the day. All three felt content to just sit there, after all the excitement, topped off with the lantern ceremony. Something still nagged at the back of Jack's head though.

Soon, they were one of the last boats still on the lake and they decided it was time to go back to the castle. Turning, Jack saw a light from the corner of his eye. A green lamp on the opposite shore. A boat was heading toward it and Jack could catch a glimpse of golden hair. Fear shot through his body as he remembered the revenge plot. It was forgotten in meeting Rapunzel and Flynn and then during the lanterns and now it may be too late. He needed to stop the thugs and that woman before they could go through with their revenge. Every bone in his body was telling him to protect those two innocent lovers.

"Wait." He called as Hiccup and Merida started paddling toward the docks. "Go that way. Towards the shore. I need to tell you something. And I need your help, too." Confused, they turned the boat and began paddling to shore. "Last night I was flying through the forest and I came across those two we met in town. Rapunzel and Flynn. Rapunzel has freakishly long hair and it was glowing in the dark. Thats how I came across them in the first place." The other boat had reached the shore and one figure got out, leaving the other behind. "We need to go faster." He started pushing the boat along, calling the wind to help him push it without him touching the water and freezing it against the sides. Soon, the boat was going faster than Merida and Hiccup could row and they pulled in the paddles. Jack continued speaking over the wind. "There was this woman in the bushes spying on them and I overheard her telling these two others, thugs, about this plot to take revenge on Flynn. Something to do with a crown and magical hair. I think that those two are going to get hurt tonight and you two are the only ones that can help me stop them." The other figure had gotten out of the boat and was standing there, waiting.

"Wait, a minute. How are we going to stop these people from hurting Rapunzel and Flynn? We don't have any weapons or anything." Hiccup asked over the wind. Jack slowed, thinking. He hadn't thought of how. Only that he needed to do something.

"Tha's Rapunzel o'er there, right?" Merida pointed to the lone figure by the boat. "We get 'er safe on our boat, then go get Flynn from wherever he went." She made it seem simple. But Hiccup knew it wasn't going to be that easy. They would still have to deal with whoever it was taking the revenge out on Flynn, and convince Rapunzel to get in the boat with them. There was no time to hash out a real plan, though, because they were soon pulling up on the shore.

Rapunzel looked at them in confusion. "You're the ones from the marketplace." She realized. "What are you doing here? Flynn had to go take care of something, but then we were going to head back to the town to find an inn."

"He's walking into a trap!" Hiccup said as he got out and pulled the boat closer to shore. "He's in danger, and you are, too."

"Get in the boat." Merida called to her, reaching out a hand.

"Flynn's in trouble? Why?" Rapunzel asked. Fear growing in her eyes and she looks toward a could of large boulders where Flynn had gone behind. She doesn't take Merida's hand. Hiccup looks at Jack for help.

"Tell her that some people have a bone to pick with him and are using her and the crown to get it." Jack said from on top of the boat. He was trying to see past the rocks to figure out where Flynn had gone. Hiccup repeated Jack's words.

"How do you know about the crown? Flynn took it with him, when he left."

"Just trust us. We are here to help you." Hiccup tried to convince her. Suddenly they heard a cry cut off and followed by a thump.

"Eugene." Rapunzel cried and ran towards the sound. Hiccup grabbed her arm and tried to stop her.

"No, don't. You're in danger, too."Rapunzel struggled against him, confused and scared; wanting to make sure that Flynn was okay.

"Get her into the boat. I'll see if ay can help." Merida yelled out, running towards the sound. Hiccup watched her go feeling helpless, he didn't want Merida to rush into trouble alone. She could get hurt, and from what Jack had said, the other two were very large men.

"Jack." He called.

"On it." The spirit followed suit, and in a second both were gone behind the boulders.

"Let me go." Rapunzel cried, struggling again. She managed to break free of Hiccup's grasp but he put himself in her way, arms out. "He needs my help. Eugene!" She called.

"Merida will help him. But you need to get into the boat. The ones after Flynn want you, too." She stopped then and looked at him with fearful eyes. "Trust me." He said. "You'll be safest in the boat."

"But.." She was torn, between the promise of safety and the need to help the man she was falling in love with. Hiccup started to herd her toward the boat and she let him.

Merida and Jack easily found the thugs who were busy tying an unconscious Flynn to the steering wheel of a boat. "Hey, yeauh." Merida called, throwing a rock at the head of one of the Stabbinton Brothers. Her aim was right on, as always, and the man turned around with a growl. His eyes narrowed on the slight redhead who had thrown the rock. He nudged his brother, who was finishing up securing Flynn to the boat.

"What do we have here?" The brothers jumped of the boat. The one that had spoke walked toward her as the other pushed the boat into the water. Jack hoped that Hiccup had managed to convince Rapunzel to get on the boat.

"I am Merida. Princess of DunBorough. Guest of the King and Queen of Corona. And I order yeauh tae release that man." Merida held herself up with dignity and power. It didn't work, however. The thug and his brother laughed and came closer.

"What are you doing?" Jack asked panicked. Commanding thugs like a royal wouldn't work. They were outlaws. They probably spit in the face of nobles.

"Trust me." She whispered

"A little girl like you shouldn't be out on a night like this. It's dangerous." The second man drew a knife from a sheath and displayed it casually.

"Wouldn't want a guest of the king to get hurt, now would we." They were getting closer. Merida grabbed another rock.

"Run! Merida." Jack called. He froze the ground in front of the thugs. Merida threw the rock at the first one's head and turned and ran. They gave chase, slipping a little on the light film of ice. It didn't slow them much, though, but it did give Merida enough of a head start to disappear in the brush. Jack noticed the boat floating toward the docks on the other side of the moat. That crown could get Flynn in trouble if he is picked up by the guards. He could either follow Merida or make sure that Flynn is safe first. He'd have to trust Merida to hold her own for a minute.

Jack flew to the boat. It was bigger than the canoe they used to get there; it had a mast and steering wheel, and what looked like a little cabin below decks. Flynn's hands were tied to the steering wheel with the crown attached to one hand, also, his back was secured to the mast so he would be standing straight. Otherwise, the guy was out cold. Jack sent a gust of wind toward the sail, which was only half out. This slowed the boat down to an almost stop. A few more gusts and it moved backwards a little, but it wasn't enough. The wind he called just wasn't strong enough to carry the whole boat back to the shore. The best he could do would be to push the anchor overboard and loosen his ties. They could come back for him once everyone was safe.

Hiccup was about to help Rapunzel into the boat when a voice called out her name. "Rapunzel. Thank goodness, there you are." Turning, he saw a woman with a cloak and curly black hair.

"Mother." Rapunzel, said. "What are you doing here?"

"I'm here to save you, Rapunzel. That boy is trying to kidnap you. He'll take you to those who wish to use your hair for their own benefit. Come with me now." She held out a hand. Rapunzel hesitated and moved toward the woman.

"Wait, Rapunzel. She's with the guys who attacked Flynn. She set up the trap with the crown." That what Jack said at least. Rapunzel stopped and looked back, she was now in between Mother Gothel and Hiccup.

Gothel narrowed her eyes at Hiccup, and he guess that Jack was right. "He's lying, Rapunzel. I would never let you get hurt." Rapunzel went closer to her mother.

"What about Flynn?" Hiccup asked. "Merida and- Once Merida finds Flynn, he'll come back for you."

"Flynn took the crown and left you. Can't you see? He never cared about you, all he wanted was his satchel back. Look." She pointed toward a ship that had appeared heading toward the castle town. At the helm was a lone figure holding the steering wheel and a glinting object. Flynn. Rapunzel gasped, tears brimming in her eyes. She turned and ran into the open arms of her mother, who embraced her comfortingly. "Let's go home, Rapunzel." Gothel spared a glance at Hiccup as she led the blonde girl away, her cloak flapping back to reveal a wicked looking dagger, and the look was so full of malice and threat that Hiccup shivered.

"It's a trick. Flynn wouldn't leave you willingly. You know that." Hiccup tried one last time. They didn't turn around. Neither of the women had seen the flying boy in blue trying to turn the boat around. Or that Flynn's head was tilted in a strange angle. No one could have seen. And Hiccup had failed. Rapunzel had been taken. Willingly, yes, but she was now in the hands of the one she needed to be protected most from. There was something about that woman that screamed danger, and the blonde girl he had just met chose to go with her.

Hiccup was about to follow behind, to try and convince Rapunzel to come back, though he knew it was hopeless, when he heard a crash through the bushes nearby. Merida burst out in full run and tripped on some rocks. She went sprawling on the ground. Hiccup ran over to her tried to help her up, but she gasped in pain.

"Ay think I twisted my ankle."

The Stabbington Brothers appeared behind her. They were breathless, and stopped to breathe once they saw Merida on the ground. Merida was breathing heavily, too. She must have led them on a chase.

One of the thugs looked up and scanned the area. "Where did the girl with the hair go?"

The other one looked up, too. "Gothel must have taken her while we were busy." He glared at Merida. "That snake. We just gave up the crown and now we lost the girl, too." He went to punch a tree.

"She's gone?" Merida asked Hiccup in a whisper. He put her arm over his shoulder and tried to help her up. He wasn't very strong, but she wasn't very heavy.

"Couldn't convince her to stay once her mother came. Seeing Flynn on the boat didn't help."

"Sorry."

"I saw Jack over there, though. Trying to stop the boat."

"Sae that's where he went."

"Quit your whispering, you two. We're trying to think." One of the thugs said. He turned to his brother. "What should we do with them."

"That one says she's a princess, though she don't act like one. We could ransom them. To make up for the crown." His brother nodded in agreement and pulled a coil of rope from over his shoulder. They approached the two.

"Tie them up." The first one said.

A burst of cold air came from behind them and froze the ground in front of the thugs. Jack. One of the thugs slipped and Merida and Hiccup took the chance to run. Jack supported Merida's other side and helped as she hobbled to the boat. The thugs were right behind them, and Hiccup turned to throw some rocks at them. Jack managed to help Merida onto the boat just as the brothers caught up to Hiccup and grabbed him.

"Gotcha, you little runt." Hiccup struggled but to no avail.

"Hiccup!" Merida cried. She attempted to get out the boat, but hissed as she put weight on her ankle and only succeed in rocking the boat a little. Jack held her back.

"Go!" Hiccup said. "Jack make sure she takes care of that ankle." The winter spirit met his friends eyes for a moment before nodding and calling up the wind to push the water around the boat and carry them off. Hiccup saw the look in his friend's eyes and knew that Jack would be back to help him once he's sure Merida was okay. He watched them get farther away as the thugs tied his hands behind his back.

"We should kill you after all the trouble you and your friends have given us." Thug one snarled, his knife in his hand.

"Maybe we can ransom him instead. You one of those royals, too?"

Hiccup considered lying and telling them he was no one. But they might cut his throat instead of keeping him alive. These men wanted money, and to exploit that would be his best way at surviving. "I am the son of the most powerful chieftain of the Barbaric Archipelagos and a guest of the kingdom as well. My dad will give you anything to get me back safely. We have jewels and gold aplenty." It wasn't true. Stoick wouldn't pay for the release of his son, he would launch a one man attack to get him back. And they really didn't have all that much money. Berk usually traded food or goods for more food and goods when the traders came by. The thugs eyes lit up at the thought of treasure however, and he knew he was safe... for now.


	8. Twisted Ankle

**A/N: Beggin' for forgiveness for the long wait. Here's a couple of chapters.**

In the middle of the lake, Jack altered the course of the boat an aimed for another stalled in the middle of the lake. It took Merida a few seconds before she realized that it was Flynn's boat. He was starting to wake up, and she watched as he began to realize what happened and struggle against his bonds. "No. No, no, no. Rapunzel!" She could hear him call over the water.

"Do you think you could help untie him?" Jack asked, perching on the bow of the boat. Merida nodded, knowing that he was really asking if her hurt ankle was strong enough.

"Ayh'm fine, Jack. Really. It only a wee sprain."

"Yeah, uh huh." He said, skeptical, as he started to slow down the boat. Merida touched her ankle and winced a little, it was a pretty bad sprain, but she wasn't going to admit that it hurt. That stupid ankle is what caused Hiccup to get captured by the thugs. They should have gotten her. She looked back at the shore but couldn't see anything but a faint green light in the forest, growing dimmer. Suddenly, the boat bumped against the ship, shaking her out of her reverie.

"Who's there? Who are you? Where's Rapunzel." Flynn asked, looking dazed.

"Ayh'm Merida. From the dance?" Merida suppressed a flash of annoyance towards him. She was still mad that he was rude to her back in town and now here she was saving him. She managed to lift herself onto the boat and stand up, careful to keep pressure off of her foot.

"Oh, that's right. You started yelling at Maximus about something. Hey, help untie me would you?" He tugged at his bonds to demonstrate his immobility.

Merida rolled her eyes and gave a look to Jack that was a mixture of exasperation, frustration, and a glare for that episode back in the town square. Jack just shrugged. She hopped over to the steering wheel and began to untie the ropes.

"So, what are you doing out here?" Flynn asked. "Don't get me wrong, I'm grateful. I am. I mean if you hadn't come I would probably have drifted towards the docks and gotten picked up by the guards. Especially with this in my hand." He nodded to the crown. "Those Stabbingtons. I swear I'm going t-"

"Don't ya ever stop talking?" Merida snapped, finishing up one hand and hobbling over to the other one. "Ay know about the Stabbingtons, and I knew about their plot to do this to yeh. We were just too late to warn you in time."

"Wait. What? How could you know what they were planning? I didn't know what they were planning- though I probably should have- and I've known them for years."

Merida looked to Jack. What do I say? Her eyes said. She couldn't tell him that her magical invisible friend had spied on the thugs last night and told her about the plot just an hour before. "I- uh."

"Tell him that you over heard them talking about it." Jack suggested after a second.

"How would I explain that?" She whispered. He shrugged. Flynn looked at her and then tried to see what she was looking at. He didn't see anything.

""Or that you saw something going on and came to help."

"That may work." She mouthed.

Flynn raised his eyebrow and looked around uncomfortably, still seeing nothing. Just my luck to be rescued by a crazy girl, he thought.

"I..." Merida started. "We saw your boat heading towards the shore towards some shady looking people. We rented a boat too, to see the lights. We... noticed Rapunzel alone and went to go talk to her to see if everything was all right. Then we heard a thump and those thugs came. They wanted to take Rapunzel."

Who's we? And what happened to Rapunzel? Is she okay?" Flynn's other hand, the one with the crown, came free and he grabbed Merida's shoulder, shaking her.

"Hiccup and me. He was the one who was standing by your friend after the dance. And Rapunzel's fine, Ay think. Her mother came and took her away. She thought you left her to the thugs for the crown. Let go." She shook him off.

Flynn let go and looked at Merida carefully. "You said her mother came and took her away?" Merida nodded, leaning against the mast for support. Her ankle was definitely painful. "Where did her mother come from?" Flynn started to pace in the small area of the boat, rubbing his wrists as he went. The boat began to rock a little. "And how did they know about her?"

"Rapunzel's mother set it all up." Jack said, standing next to Merida. "She was going to sick those thugs on Flynn and the get Rapunzel back. Or something like that, from what I overheard and what happened." She looked at him and nodded, it made a little sense. The woman was probably hiding in the bushes waiting to take out the thugs and 'rescue' Rapunzel. Why? She had no idea. Jack did though, and he was watching Flynn carefully to see if he figured it out.

After a moment, Flynn stopped pacing and looked at Merida, eyes wide. "Her mother set it all up. She wanted to keep Rapunzel in her tower and use her hair for herself."  
"Nailed it." Jack said. "Though I wouldn't have guessed the tower thing. Still don't know what the hair does."

"That means Rapunzel is in trouble." Flynn went on. "We have to help her." He gripped the steering wheel turned it wildly, causing the ship to turn around. The motion caused Merida to stumble and put weight on her leg, she hissed in pain. Flynn didn't notice, but Jack did.

"We need to get you back to shore and get your ankle looked at." He said. "Tell him to drop you off at the docks."

"No. I'm fine. I want to help." Merida protested quietly.

"At least sit down." He said. She did, grudgingly.

"Sorry, but why do you keep talking to yourself. It's kind of weird and makes you look crazy." Flynn said from the steering wheel. He had gotten the boat turned around but it wasn't going forward. He went to check the sails and found that they were fine. "Why won't the boat go?"

"Ay just talk to myself sometimes." She told him. "What did you do to it?" Merida asked Jack under her breath.

"Have him turn around and I'll tell you."

"No." Merida looked around to see what could be keeping it still. Aha. "You pushed the anchor off." She said. Jack just frowned. "The anchor's down." She raised her voice.

Flynn heard and looked to what she was talking about. "Now how did that happen?" He wondered.

"Please Mer." Realizing that she wasn't going to listen, Jack switch to another tactic. "How do you guys expect to find her in the forest at night? Especially if Rapunzel's mother doesn't want her to be found."

That got Merida thinking. How were they going to do anything so late at night? "Hey, Flynn? Do yeh know where to find her? It's pretty dark out."

Flynn hauled up the anchor up and sat on his heels in thought. "I guess I hadn't thought of that." He admitted. "I suppose the smart thing to do would be to wait until morning..." Jack made a triumphant gesture behind Merida's back. "We can make camp on the shore and wait until morning."

Jack's face fell. So close. "Are you really going to camp out with a strange man on a rocky shore when there is a castle and beds and medical help just across the way?" He asked, getting frustrated.

"''Ow else am I going to be able to help?" She whispered back. "I told yeh Ayh'm fine." The ship was starting to move toward the shore. Flynn had thought to tie a rope to the boat Merida had come on so that it didn't get left behind.

Jack frowned and looked like he was about to say something more when suddenly he flew off, the wind catching him and lifting him into the air. Once up, he called to the wind to push against the sails of the ship, halting the progress. He knew Merida was just being stubborn, and he knew that there was no way she would pass up the opportunity for an adventure like a rescue mission. But he also saw her winces and the swelling in her ankle. She needed a cold compression and to keep it up for a day or two.

The two in the boat braced themselves against the sudden cold wind that blew up out of nowhere. "What a storm." Flynn shouted above the wind. "You okay there, Curly?" Merida nodded, then glared at Jack. They locked eyes and stared at each other in an unspoken contest before, finally, Merida gave in.

"Fine, whate'er. We'll go back. Alright? Flynn, turn the boat around. I need to get back to the town." She shouted over the wind.

Flynn looked at her. "What?" The wind died down a little so he could hear her better.

"I need to get back tae town. I twisted ma ankle running from those thugs and this wind won't let us go any further." She said.

"Your ankle?" He repeated. "You hurt your ankle and still bothered to come and untie me from this ship?" She nodded and touched her ankle, which throbbed. The wind died down and Flynn went to look at her injury. "Ow. This looks painful. How you managed to stand so long on it is beyond me. We should get you someone to look at that."

"Ha, told ya." Jack said triumphantly.

"Do you have any place to stay to let that heal up?" Flynn asked, still oblivious to the winter spirits remarks.

Merida nodded dejectedly. "Ay'm a guest at the castle for thay princess' birthday."

"You're one of the royals visiting?" Flynn said, taken aback. "And I was going to take you through the forest to find a girl you barely know? I could be charged for kidnapping!" He was freaking out now. "I'm already not on good terms with the kingdom as it is. Just imagine if they found me with a missing princess of… where are you from again?"

"Scotland. But-"

"A missing princess of Scotland who is probably already missed right now. I'd be dead before I could even explain."

"My friend was kidnapped by the Stabbington brothers." Merida blurted out, interrupting Flynn's monologue. "He's a castle guest, too. The son of a viking king."

Flynn started pacing again, holding his head and mumbling to himself. "What did I get myself into? First Rapunzel, then you, and now your friend." He stopped for a second, as if trying to make a decision. "Okay, I'll take you back to the castle, and if I don't get taken up by the guards I will make an attempt to find your friend, okay?"

Merida looked at Jack. "I'll help find him too." He assured her.

She sighed and gave in. "Fayhn. Let's do that." Flynn nodded and turned the boat around. Merida held on to the mast to help steady herself. Once they were facing docks, Jack called up some wind to help them along.

"This wind is really favoring us now." Flynn remarked. "Before it was like it was trying to stop us from going to shore."

"Tha's because it was." Merida mumbled quietly.

"What do you mean by that?" Flynn had heard. Jack waited curiously to see how Merida would explain.

"Would ya believe me if I told you that I had an invisible friend who can control the wind?"

"Probably not. Though, recently I've seen some strange things happen." Flynn answered.

"Have you ever heard of Jack Frost?"

"Jack Frost? Can't say that I have. Wait, isn't he the one they say nips at your nose and leaves frost on the windows in the cold?" Merida nodded. "Well then, I've heard tales from travelers about it. Don't get very cold winters here."

"For the record, I have never nipped at anyone's nose." Jack remarked. He was perched up on one of the crossbeams of the mast Merida was leaning on. Flynn stiffened and turned to look around.

"Who said that?"

Jack looked down at Flynn warily. Did he just hear him? "I did." He answered, hesitantly. He jumped down from the mast. Flynn stumbled backward at the appearance of a strange boy with pure white hair, ragged trousers, and a pale blue sweater. "You can see me." Jack said, startled, then happily. "You can see me. Merida, you got him to see me."

Merida smiled wearily at her friend's happiness. She had been getting tired of carrying on two conversations at once and having Flynn think she was crazy. It was hard work having a friend who constantly made comments that no one else but she could hear. "Flynn, meet Jack Frost."

"He's the one you've been talking to this whole time?" He voice was strained. "I mean is this real?"

"Real as you are." Jack commented. "Don't know how you can see me, but this is cool."

"Uh, huh." Flynn was pale, and he turned back to the steering wheel to keep it on course. They were almost to the docks. By now, most of the lights of the town had gone out and everybody was in bed. A ways along the docks, sat Maximus waiting for the return of Flynn and Rapunzel. His head turned to look at the incoming boat as it docked and he trotted over once he recognized the figures inside.

Flynn lifted Merida onto the docks where she leaned on Jack for support. Her ankle was still painful and she could barely put any pressure on it. Flynn kept glancing around in case any guards were about, but they were alone for now. "Hey, Max, She's hurt her ankle and needs to get back to the castle before her family starts worrying. Would you help carry her?" The horse whinnied and maneuvered himself so that she could get on. Maximus looked suspiciously at Flynn though, as if expecting some kind of trick. "Not a good idea to go with you, you know, given my wanted status. I'll wait here."

The horse snorted and glared at Flynn, meaning something along the lines of; yeah right, like I'm buying that. Maximus gestured to the side as if indicating that Flynn should walk ahead of him.

"Rapunzel's in trouble you know. If I get taken in, she could be seriously hurt." Maximus looked thoughtful then, as if trying to decide the right course of action. Merida and Jack watched the exchange with a mix of curiosity and amusement. It wasn't every day one saw a grown man arguing with a horse. Though, Jack has seen Hiccup argue with Toothless. And Merida oftentimes talked to Angus. This was different in the way that the horse almost seemed to have more power in the situation that the human.

"Listen, Maximus. This girl needs to get back to the castle, pronto. It's late, she's injured. And besides, if you still want to catch me, I probably won't get far in the dark anyway. Just let me find Rapunzel first, okay?" The horse seemed to find this reasonable and nodded, then turned around and headed for the castle with Merida on his back.

Jack hung back for a second. "I'm going to make sure she gets there okay, then I'll come back and help you. I still need to find my friend who's still out there."

"That Hiccup kid, right? Well a little help couldn't hurt. I'm actually thinking of getting some sleep and tracking her down in the morning. The girl was right about it being too dark out."

Jack didn't bother to mention that it was him that had said it first, and that Merida had just repeated his words. He just nodded and flew off. Flynn braced himself against the rush of cold air that followed. When he was alone again, he stood there pondering what had just happened. He reached into his satchel and pulled out the crown. This little thing has caused him a lot of problems, he realized. First it had led him on that chase through the forest where he found the tower, then had been hit in the head with a frying pan by a barefoot girl who had tied him up with her ridiculously long hair then bribed him to take her to town to see the annual lantern event. Yesterday alone he had a run in with thugs at the Snuggly Duckling, escaped through a secret passage, fought a sword wielding horse with a frying pan, almost drowned in a mineshaft, and been healed by magical glowing hair.

All this because he stole a crown. Did he regret it? No. He didn't, because then he wouldn't have met Rapunzel- or, he guessed, that princess and her invisible friend. He still couldn't quite believe that he had actually seen a boy appear out of thin air. Flynn had had a long day, and once he got the boat to the shore, he planned on finding a nice camping spot and sleeping until it was light enough to find Rapunzel.

He fingered the crown for a moment more, then, making a decision, reached back as if to throw it into the water.

"Hey, you there. What are you doing?" Someone shouted from behind him. More shouts followed and suddenly he was surrounded by castle guards, one of which seized the crown while another forced his hands behind his back.

The captain of the guard appeared before him and stood gloating for a second, before ordering Flynn to be taken away.

"I can't be taken now. She's in trouble." Flynn cried in vain as he was hauled away.


	9. Captured Ransom

Maximus got Merida back to the castle, and after a lot of questions and answers about how she was hurt and where she had been, she was carted off to the infirmary. Merida had told them that she had tripped and it had taken her forever to get back up to the castle with her ankle. She was exhausted and once she had reached the castle she felt all the adrenaline she was running off of run dry. She was half asleep as she was taken to get her ankle checked on, but she managed to lock eyes with Jack, giving him the unspoken message that warned him to check in on her and tell her everything that was happening. He nodded and crossed his heart in promise and she allowed herself to be taken away.

Satisfied that she was in good hands, Jack called the wind to lift him and carry him back to the docks. He wanted to see if Flynn was still there or had left already. Near the castle walls, he noticed a commotion and upon further investigation found that it was Flynn surrounded by a dozen guards escorting him unwillingly to the barrack prison. The thief looked up and noticed Jack. He pleaded with his eyes for help. Jack couldn't do anything himself so he nodded and flew off.

Flynn watched him go with a mixture of hope and disappointment. He realized that the strange boy he had only just met probably wouldn't help much with his predicament. Dejected, he was taken into the barracks and locked in a cell.

Jack found Maximus by the castle stables, happily munching a basket of apples. The horse had been rewarded for returning the Scottish princess to the castle. Jack told him Flynn's fate and the horse pricked his ears forward. "He's probably the only one who knows where Rapunzel is." He added, and Maximus nodded. He snatched up the last couple of apples and then started off at a trot toward the castle gates.

The winter spirit watched him go for a moment, then lifted up into the air to fly towards the forest. Now that he knew Merida was in safe hands and in a place where she would be forced to rest that ankle, he was eager to find Hiccup and make sure he was okay. He felt so useless and guilty that he had let his best friend be taken by ruthless thugs and that his other friend hurt herself. And what could he have done otherwise? Of the two, he was able to save one and help another who had been in trouble ( although that didn't seem to stop him from being imprisoned in the end). Still, he needed to make sure that Hiccup was safe.

It took an hour to find the campsite. Flying low to the ground, he started from the place he last saw Hiccup and went on from there, going back and forth between the trees. He was no good at tracking, and it was too dark to see footprints or other signs of travel well. It was the light of a dying fire and low voices that finally led him to the thugs' campsite.

Hiccup was tied to a tree, his head lolled to the side, like he was sleeping. He had been tied so that his torso was held immobile and his hands were tied behind his back. His legs were splayed out in front of him. The two thugs, the Stabbingtons, were off to the side of the fire quietly talking among themselves. The young viking stirred slightly as a cold breeze brushed his skin. A second later he heard the voice of his friend.

"Hic. You awake?" Asked Jack Frost. Hiccup gave a small nod and opened one eye slightly to show he was awake. He hadn't really been sleeping. Well, he may have dozed for a while, but he had spent the last hour or so listening to what his captors were planning. After they had tied him up and dragged him to their campsite, they had secured him to the tree and basically ignored him, occasionally casting a glance or glare his way. At first he had actively listened and watched the thugs, but after a while of sitting his eyes got tired and he closed them for a while. He also figured that if he appeared to have fallen asleep, then they would feel freer to talk and he would get a better idea of what they were planning. It worked.

Jack glanced back at the other two and realized that Hiccup must have been trying to listen in. "I finally got Merida back to the castle." He updated quietly. "That ankle looked pretty painful. We also stopped to rescue that Flynn guy. He was stalled on the lake and tied to the mast. The most I could do without help was to stop the ship and push the anchor overboard. Both he and Merida were both set on coming back and rescuing you and Rapunzel." Hiccup's mouth twitched in a smile at that.

"So how are you? Did they hurt you?" He scanned Hiccup to see if there were any injuries.

Hiccup opened one eye and looked to see if either of the brothers were watching him, they weren't. He opened his other eye and met the blue ones of his friend and shook his head. "They only tied me up." He mouthed and wriggled his bonds to demonstrate. "I'm fine."

Jack smiled in relief and sat back on his heels. "That's good. So what are they planning to do with you?"

Hiccup looked back at the brothers. One of them stretched and yawned, and the other kicked off his shoes. The second one looked back at Hiccup who quickly dropped his head and closed his eyes, pretending to sleep again. The thugs seemed to have decided to turn in for the night, and began to get comfortable for sleep. Hiccup gave Jack a meaningful look that told him they could talk when the two fell asleep.

Jack agreed. "Were you able to get any sleep yourself?" He asked. Hiccup shrugged, his eyes open again. He strained against his ropes and looked up at Jack with a question in his eyes. Can you do anything about this? The frost spirit touched the rope, causing frost like tendrils to creep into the fibers. The expansion of the water put strain on the tension but it would need a good hit before it would break. He made it as cold as he could, then shrugged, defeated. Here was another thing he couldn't do to help.

Hiccup gave a small smile of assurance. He's just have to get out another way. Someone snored over by the fire. They were asleep. He gave a sigh of relief. "They've been talking all night." He whispered quietly. "In the morning, one of them will go deliver a ransom note. I told them that my family was very rich and that my father would pay anything to get me back." He smiled at this, Jack laughed too. He knew that Stoick would tear down the forest to find his son rather than pay some ransom. Jack could just imagine the look on the Stabbington Brothers' faces when they find themselves faced with angry vikings instead of worried family.

"From what I could tell after that; they're going to wait here until time to collect the money, which is around noon. I'm not sure about after that though." He added, his voice somehow even lower. "I don't trust them to just let me go once they have money in their hands. They won't even have me there at the meeting place. One of them plans on keeping me off in the bushes while the other collects."

Jack nodded at this information. "I'll tell Merida so she can pass it along." He whispered back. "Boy, she's going to get in trouble once she tells everyone what happened."

"You mean she hasn't yet?"

"They carted her off to take care of her ankle as soon as she got up there, and she practically fell asleep on her feet. They'll be asking questions once she's awake again though."

Hiccup nodded, then smiled wryly. "Some vacation, huh?"

Jack gave a sarcastic laugh. "Better than frosting mountain towns."

They sat in companionable silence for a while. Jack rested his back on the tree next to Hiccup. Hiccup had palmed a stone and was tossing it from hand to hand with his elbows still pinned to his side. After a while, he sighed and put the rock down.

"You should probably get some sleep." Jack suggested. He had noticed a difference in the lighting. It was almost dawn.

"Jack?" Hiccup turned his head and looked at him. "It'll turn out okay, right? I mean, I'll get out of here somehow and these guys will get caught and go to jail, right?"

Jack saw something in his friend's eyes, a slight glimmer of fear. "It will," He assured him quietly. "I will tell Merida about what they are planning and she will pass on the message. And Stoick will probably come charging in once he hears about you. I only wish that I can do more to help." He hated how he couldn't do anything but freeze the rope a little, or talk to anyone other than Hiccup or Merida. He couldn't even untie the rope himself. He had tried, but, like the chalk, nothing he did affected the knots.

Hiccup nodded at Jack's words. He knew that Jack hurt inside sometimes at his fate, though he never admitted it. "It's okay. You're doing plenty. I mean, I don't know anybody who'd be able to come right into the middle of a camp unseen and have a conversation with a captive without anyone hearing. And you can fly." Jack smiled at that.

Across from the camp, one of the Stabbington Brothers grunted and turned over in his sleep. Jack noticed that it was getting noticeably lighter out. He could now see Hiccup's face clearly, and the fire had died down. The other brother murmured something unintelligible and received another grunt in reply. The boys knew that they didn't have much time left.

"Do you want me to stay with you for a while?" Jack whispered. Hiccup thought for a moment, but as much as he wanted a friend to be nearby, he shook his head no.

"You should go and tell Merida about what's going to happen so that she can tell the others." He whispered back.

"Are you sure you'll be alright?"

"Yes, I'll be fine. I don't think anything will happen to me until later. And besides," He brought his hands out from behind his back, rope in one, a sharp rock in another.

"How did you do that?"

"I pretended to trip and grabbed a rock when I was down. Been working on those ties all night." Hiccup answered. He put his hands back behind his back as if they were still tied.

"If you could do that, why did you ask me to try and get the bigger rope?"

"I won't have time to saw through it before they wake me. I hoped you would be able to do something."

"Sorry." Thug One turned over in his sleep again.

"Go, Jack. I'll be fine." Hiccup urged.

"Okay. But I will be back after I talk to Mer."

Hiccup nodded, then smiled. "Hey, Jack?"

"What?"

"You know you don't really have to whisper, too. They can't hear you."

Jack laughed. "I know. It's just weird to talk normally while you have to talk quietly." He said.


	10. Tangled Rescue Part 1

**A/N: Aright, here you guys go. New chapter for you. Reminder, this story belongs to my friend, not me. All credit goes to her.**

Jack had left Hiccup as the Stabbington Brothers woke up and began to get ready for the day. His first stop was to visit Merida, but when he peeked through her window, she had been passed out on her bed and he hadn't wanted to wake her. She needed the rest. Instead he flew up to Hiccup's room to see what the vikings were doing. He found Stoick talking with Gobber. Opening the window a crack he was able to catch a little of their conversation.

"-Never returned last night. I'm beginning to wonder if something happened to him last night." Stoick was saying.

"Yeh know Hiccup. He sometimes get carried away and loses track of time." That was Gobber. "Ah'm sure that he will come back any minute now wi' a whole bunch of new ideas and stuff."

"Maybe you're right." Stoick sat on the bed, thinking. "I just can't shake this feeling that something is wrong, though."

"Yeah, because he's tied up in the middle of a forest by two thugs who plan to ransom him." Jack murmured. He let the wind carry him away from the window. Below, he noticed some movement over by the barracks. It was still pretty early in the morning, so there weren't a lot of people out and about yet. Curious, he went to investigate.

What he found was a cluster of mean looking ruffians. They split up; some going inside, and the others into the main courtyard. The ones in the courtyard started to set some things up, moving a hand cart around and then angling it just so. Jack watched, interested and slightly amused. What were they doing?

After a minute they seemed satisfied with the position on the cart, which was near the edge of the courtyard with the handles facing up and at an angle. Finished, all but one of the ruffians went inside.

Attention fully focused on what was going down in the barracks, Jack waited to see what would happen. Luckily, he didn't have to wait long as none other than Flynn Rider burst out of the doors to the compound. He stopped as if startled and noticed a ton of soldiers coming at him from all directions. The waiting thug grabbed him and put him on the edge of the cart. A second later and a second ruffian jumped down from the second level onto the other end of the cart, sending Flynn flying through the air and onto the back of a familiar white horse.

Jack watched dumbfound for a second as the man landed square on the back of the palace steed, then burst out laughing. That was so cool! The ruffians must have been angling the cart to send Flynn exactly where the horse was standing on top of the battlements. Maximus must have somehow gotten the ruffians to help him after Jack had told him about Flynn being captured. Oh man was that the best rescue ever! And the look on the soldiers faces! Jack couldn't do anything for a moment from laughing to hard. He noticed the horse and rider start to move, galloping at full speed to the end of the battlements. Getting his breath back, Jack followed and saw Maximus leap from the wall and land on the roof of a house. They slid down and leaped to the ground speeding through the marketplace.

Jack followed and came up beside horse and rider. Maximus gave a whinny of greeting, and Flynn nodded in thanks. "Morning." Flynn called, raising his voice over the wind. "How's the red head?"

"Sleeping." Jack said loudly. "I think she'll be fine, though."

"Good. And anything on your other friend?"

"They're going to ransom him later today, but he seems fine for now."

Flynn nodded. "I'm going after Rapunzel."

Jack nodded, then after a second said, "I'll help." Suddenly, Jack had felt a sick feeling in his stomach that told him that something bad might happen to Flynn. It was only mid-morning and the ransom was going to be at noon. There should be enough time to help and still be there for his friend.

Merida woke to sunshine on her and clean sheets against her cheek. She smiled softly and yawned. Sitting up she recognized the guest room she and her brothers were staying in at the castle. No one else was in the room. They must have gone to breakfast, she though. Why had they left without waking her? She threw back the covers and realized her foot had been resting on top of a couple pillows. It was wrapped in a bandage.

Suddenly, she remembered everything that had happened last night. The town, the lanterns, Jack, Hiccup, the dance, the attempted rescue, she hurting her ankle running through the forest, Hiccup being captured. She sat there staring as everything rushed back and a pit of fear began to develop in her stomach. Hiccup. Rapunzel. They were in trouble.

She glanced at the window, it was midmorning. How long had she slept? She hurriedly got out of bed and gasped as she put weight on her ankle. She needed to help Hiccup though. It was her fault. She had reached the wardrobe to get new clothes on when the door to her room opened up. It was her mother, coming in to check on her.

"Merida!" The queen exclaimed. "Get back into bed this instant. Yae shouldnae be on that ankle."

"Mum. I have to-"

"Bed. Now." She ordered.

Merida gave an exasperated sigh and got back into bed. There was no arguing with her mother. "But-"

The queen busied herself with tucking the princess back into bed. "There. Now isn't that better. You will need tae keep off of tha' ankle until it's healed, the nurse said." She went to open the curtains all the way and open the window. "Let's get some fresh air, shall we? The castle has been a madhouse all morning. Apparently, one of the princes didn't return to the castle last night. King Thomas and Queen Primrose 'ave soldiers all over searching for him." She sat on the bed. "His poor father has been pacing the throne room all day."

Merida knew who she was talking about. She also knew that if it had been she who had been captured, her father would be doing the same. "Mum, I have tae tell yeh something. About what happened last night."

"Oh? Yes, what did happen last night, Merida? How did yea twist yer ankle? Yeauh were barely coherent last night when you came in on that horse." Her mother looked at her, waiting for the explanation.

Merida told her about how she knew the prince, Hiccup, and that they had been in the town together and how they went to see the lanterns. She told her about meeting Flynn and Rapunzel and how they had went into the forest after the lanterns and then about the thugs. She made it seem like she and Hiccup were with Flynn and Rapunzel and that Flynn had gone off to do something when they heard something. She lied and told her mother that Hiccup had gone to see what had happened while she and the other girl waited, but after a second heard another thump and the thugs appeared and chased the girls. "Flynn managed to come back and help me after Ay twisted my ankle. He got me onto the boat, but by then it was tae late for Hiccup and Rapunzel." She concluded. She felt bad about lying a little to her mom, but it was too much trouble to explain about Jack. She got the message across though. Hiccup and the other girl were in trouble.

Queen Elinor sat there as her daughter told her story. She didn't interrupt, just listened; a skill she had worked on over the summer. When Merida was done, she stood stiffly and turned to the window. "This is a lot to take in, Merida." She said, thinking about what needed to happen with this news. She needed to share it with the king and queen of Corona and with the chieftain of Berk so that they knew the full story and could react accordingly. "Ay'll go and take care of this. The king and queen should know what you've told me. You stay here and rest." She swept out the door and down the hall.

She found the resident monarchs in the throne room, along with a few others of the visiting royal guests. The viking leader was also there, his voice easily heard across the room. At the moment he was interrogating a younger viking. Both seemed frustrated.

"I told you. I saw Hiccup with this red-headed chick down by the square. He said they were going down to watch the lights from the docks. That's all I know." The younger viking said.

"And you don't know who the other girl was or anything else as to where they might be?" Stoick the Vast rumbled.

"No. The red-head did look a bit familiar, but I didn't know her."

"My daughter." Queen Elinor said as she came up behind them. The vikings, the King and Queen, and the others gathered in the room turned to look at her. "Princess Merida, was with your son last night." She explained. "She came back tae the castle late last night with a twisted ankle. She told mae that Hiccup had been kidnapped by some thugs in the forest along with a blonde girl named Rapunzel. She also told me that a man named Flynn was there and had helped her get back safely."

"What was my son doin' in the forest?" Stoick exclaimed loudly.

"Maybe he was trying to show off to the pincess." Snotlout suggested from behind Stoick.

"Oh, yea know Hiccup wouldn't do anything like tha'." A third viking said from the background. He had blonde hair and a wooden leg, similar to that of King Fergus'. "He'd more like go inta the forest if 'e heard there was a dr- a strange beast there."

Stoick gave him a sharp look. "You know there are none of those here."

"But there could be."

"Gobber." Stoick warned. The other viking stopped talking.

The Coronan king was about to ask what he had meant by strange beast when a guard came hurrying in. He whispered something in the king's ear. King Thomas nodded and the guard hurried out. "It seems like a prisoner escaped with the help of a palace horse and some local ruffians." He seemed a little baffled. "If you'd excuse me I should go deal with this." He rose from his throne and was halfway across the throne room when a second guard came in. He was pale and out of breath and he held a letter in his hand. He gave it to the startled king, who read through it.

After a second, the king's face became pale and he returned to the watching nobility. He handed the letter to Stoick, who read it through. When he was done he threw it to Gobber angrily and started pacing again.

"They think to hold my son ransom? For ten thousand gold pieces?" He fumed. "Do they not know who we are? We are vikings, we d'nae pay ransoms." Gobber finished reading the letter and passed it on to Queen Elinor and King Fergus, who had come to stand next to his wife.

"We need a plan of action." King Thomas said. "The letter says we have until noon to come up with the money. Now I will gladly pay, as this heinous crime has been commited on my land."

"We are not going to pay any ransom." Stoick said firmly. "I'm going to get my son back; the viking way."

A minute after her mother left, Merida had gotten back out of bed, cringing as her ankle hurt, and gotten dressed. She grabbed her bow and quiver, which she had hidden at the back of the wardrobe, strung the bow, and slung both onto her back. Then she snuck out of her room and started down the hall, heading towards the front doors.

She passed by castle workers who gave her odd looks for the weapons on her back, but said nothing. They just passed by and went on with their work. She was grateful no one stopped her.

It was hard going with her ankle so tender and soon she had to rest against a window seat in one of the hallways. She could see the courtyard from there and saw a bustle of soldiers running along the battlements and through the courtyard. Something was going on down there.

After a minute she continued on, using the wall for support. How she hated this injury. She just needed to get outside, though. As soon as she got outside she planned to borrow one of the horses and ride into the forest to look for Hiccup. She wouldn't have to walk much after that.

Her thoughts drifted to the young man she had only recently got to know. His capture bothered her so much. She knew she had only just met him, but walking with him all day yesterday, made him feel like a friend. He was funny and smart. And kind of handsome too, she though, especially when she compared him to the Scottish chieftains' sons she had met earlier that summer. And then there was the fact that he sacrificed himself to let her get away with her ankle. It was all her fault that those thugs grabbed him.

Merida found some stairs and started down them, hobbling along. This was taking so long though! There were too many stairs and she needed to get out there soon. Eventually she just gave up walking and sat on the banister to slide down instead. It was a much faster and easier way down than going down the normal way. The main doors weren't far from the end of the stairwell and she started for them. She still hadn't seen anyone who recognized her or stopped her, yet. With luck, she may get out there without-

That thought was short lived as she noticed flashes of red disappearing behind a corner, followed by a crash and a shout. A second later her three brothers came running past, a soldier with something wet covering him chasing after. They stopped and stared at her for a second disapprovingly before hurrying away from the angry guard. Harris glanced back and made and I'm watching you sign before disappearing around another corner. Merida groaned and rolled her eyes. Now her brothers were on the 'she should stay in bed and let her ankle heal' thing. She just needed to get out of there so she could help Hiccup.

A few minutes later she was in the stables. Ducking behind a stall, she waited as a couple of stable hands led horses out. It looked like some of the castle guards had ordered horses to be readied and brought out so most of the stable hands were preoccupied. Luckily for her. It was easy enough to find a good looking horse and sneak her away. Secretly, she was a little glad for whatever the commotion on the grounds was. It was really helping her get away.

As fast as she could she saddled her new mount, a roan mare. She stumbled a little under the weight of the saddle and cursed her ankle, but she managed. When the horse was all saddled up and outside she mounted and urged the horse out the gates and through the town. Riding a horse with a sprained ankle was a whole lot easier than walking, she found. It took a lot of pressure off of the injury and was faster. Soon, she was passing the main square and crossing the bridge toward the forest. Where from there? She didn't know. She just kept riding.

It took all night to get back to the tower. Rapunzel and her mother reached the valley early in the morning and climbed up using the tunnel Gothel had uncovered before. Rapunzel had been silent through the whole walk home and Mother Gothel let her have her space. Back in her room, Gothel got to work undoing her daughter's braid and taking all the flowers out. It took all morning and when she was done she went to go make some Hazelnut soup, hoping that it could cheer Rapunzel up some.

Rapunzel kept replaying that day in her head. All the fun she had, the new things she learned, Eugene. It just didn't make sense. Why did he leave her for the crown? She thought he had feelings for her. That he liked her. But he was playing her to get his precious satchel back. She sighed and looked at the piece of cloth bunched up in her hands. It was from the castle town and had the gold sun of the kingdom on it. Why couldn't she get that place out of her head?

She lay down on her bed and looked up at her painted ceiling. A cluster of figures up there caught her attention. It looked familiar. She held up the purple cloth, then looked at the picture again. It was the same shape as the sun. But how could it? She had only seen the symbol yesterday. She looked at her ceiling closer. There. Another sun among some birds she had painted. And there, another. Suddenly she was seeing tons of suns in her room. But why?

She stood in the center of her room looking up at all the paintings she had done and the subliminal symbols she had painted there without realizing. Suddenly a memory flashed before her eyes. A spinning golden sun before her and she turned and saw a man and a woman standing beside her. They looked familiar. Then she remembered. The mosaic from the castle square of the king and queen and lost princess. The golden haired, green eyed lost princess who shared a birthday with her. She remembered that crown she found in Eugene's satchel and saw herself in the mirror putting it on herself and the feeling she had when she did.

Suddenly it hit her. She was the lost princess. That was why Mother kept her away in the tower. That was why the things she'd seen didn't match up with the things she was always told; like men having sharp teeth, ruffians and thugs, and people wanting to use her hair. The world wasn't like that, ruffians had dreams, teeth weren't sharp, and there was love. She fell back against the vanity as the power of everything she had just realized hit her.

"Rapunzel?" Her mother called from the other room. "Rapunzel, what's going on up there?" Rapunzel got up and walked to the doorway, still dazed. "All you alright?" Gothel asked.

"I'm the lost princess." Rapunzel whispered, trying out the words. She was the lost princess, she had been stolen from her parents when she was a baby and taken and kept here for eighteen years.

"Ugh, please speak up, Rapunzel. You know how I hate the mumbling." Gothel said from the stairs.

"I am the lost princess." Rapunzel said louder. Clearer. She stood up straighter and looked her 'mother' in the eye. "Aren't I?" She saw the look of shock on Gothel's face and knew the truth. "Did I mumble, mother? Or should I even call you that?"

Gothel managed to recover. "Oh, Rapunzel," she scoffed. "Do you even hear yourself? Why would you ask such a ridiculous question?" She came up the stairs to try and calm down the younger girl. It was an obvious cover up.

"It was you." Rapunzel accused, pushing her away. "That boy was right; it was all you."

"Everything I did was to protect you." Gothel said, her face hard. Rapunzel pushed past her and went down the stairs. "Rapunzel!"

"I have spent my entire life hiding from people who would use me for my power-"

"Rapunzel!"

"When I should have been hiding from you."

"Where will you go?" Gothel asked coldly. "He won't be there for you."

Rapunzel stopped, her face growing white. "What did you do to him?"

"That criminal is to be hanged for his crimes."

"No!" She gasped.

"Now, now. It's alright. Listen to me." Gothel crooned comfortingly. "All of this is as it should be." She reached up to pat Rapunzel on the head.

"No." The girl cried and grabbed her former mothers arm. "You were wrong about the world, and you were wrong about me. And I will never let you use my hair, again."

Gothel broke Rapunzel's grip on her arm and backed up. He hit the mirror, causing it fall and shatter. Rapunzel turned away. She'll find her way back to the town, she'll save him. And maybe those other two, the red head and the guy with the weird leg, Hiccup, would help her. They tried before, she realized now. She just didn't listen.

Gothel watched her turn her back. Everything was falling apart, she realized. Rapunzel wasn't hers anymore. Now that she had realized the truth nothing will ever be the same. She had failed in her task and now she will have to face the others. And she'll lose the magic hair. She relied on that hair to keep her young. She couldn't let Rapunzel turn away from her like that. No. She wasn't going to let that girl go.

"You want me to be the bad guy?" She said quietly, straightening. "Fine. Now I'm the bad guy."


	11. Tangled Rescue Part 2

The horse pounded over the stone bridge and suddenly Merida was in the forest. A few minutes later she realized that she didn't know where she was and where she would need to go to find Hiccup. She stopped and looked around. If that was the direction she had just come, and the beach from last night was that way, then maybe her best option would be to go through the trees over there. If she found some kind of trail where the thugs and Hiccup may have passed then she could find their campsite. That shouldn't be too hard, right? Yeah, it should be simple enough. She urged the horse onward.

"Now was it this way, or did we go here?" Flynn asked Maximus, who shrugged in a weird, horsey way.

Jack groaned; they had been doing this for the last twenty minutes. "Are you telling me that you don't know where Rapunzel's tower is?" He asked. This was taking way longer than he thought it would.

"Well, last time I found it I was being chased through the forest by him." Flynn indicated the horse he was riding. "I didn't really have the luxury of remembering the path I took. Wait a minute; I think I remember this tree." He urged the horse onward.

Rolling his eyes, Jack followed along. He was torn between being there for his best friend and making sure that nothing bad happens to this man whom he barely knew. He had this strange feeling that something was going to go wrong on this rescue mission…

Merida found a dam. A dam in the middle of the forest. And it was broken, the water free to connect the sea to somewhere deeper within the forest. And there was still no sign of those thugs or even a campsite. She groaned out loud. She must have gone the wrong way. Maybe if she went this way…

She urged the horse back the way she came. This was taking so long, she thought. At this rate she might never find the campsite. Maybe this was a bad idea. She couldn't just sit there in her room and wait for news though; she just had to do something.

It didn't take her long to reach a spot where she could see the bridge. She continued on in the direction she was going. Hopefully she'll find something.

"Okay, are you sure you're not lost." Jack asked. He swore that they had just gone in a circle. He glanced at the sky; it wasn't quite noon yet.

"I'm sure this is the right way this time." Flynn assured. "See those arrows in that log? I dodged them when I was running from the castle guards." Maximus started going faster. It seemed like they did recognize this way. Jack followed until the horse and rider came to a sudden stop, then he found himself flying over a cliff.

"Whoa." He said, landing on the edge of the very steep cliff. He looked down and watched a couple of dislodged pebbles fall.

Flynn paced the edge of the cliff a little. "Aha, here is the place where Maximus and I fell to our doom while fighting over a satchel holding a crown." He looked at Jack's face and laughed. "We're fine, as you can see. It wasn't that bad of a fall."

Jack nodded, but still looked skeptically down the slope. "So what now?" He asked. "Do you fall down again?"

Flynn and Maximus shook their heads no at the same time. "There must be another way down I think." Flynn said. "Let's try this way."

Jack almost groaned out loud. He almost would have rather that they go down to cliff than around. This was taking so long. Both Hiccup and Rapunzel could be in trouble now.

"I should go check on my friend to see if he is still alright." He said. I'll be back in a few minutes though, just keep going."

Flynn looked at Jack for a second, before nodding. He still didn't know why the winter spirit was so keen on coming with him anyway.

"A pub? In th' middle of the forest." Merida asked. She had taken to talking out loud, like she did with Angus back home. The mare didn't react to her words as much her own horse did, but it helped her little to vocalize her thoughts. "Maybe someone in there could help?" The horse twitched her ears. "Ay mean, it can't hurt, can it?" She dismounted and tied the reins to a nearby tree, then went inside, slightly limping. By the side she noticed a few wanted posters, one of which was a picture of a man who looked like Flynn, but with a piggish sort of nose. The other one was of the two thugs who had taken Hiccup. She grabbed that one, hopefully it'd help her.

The second the door was opened, a rush of putrid scent engulfed her. She gagged, then saw the occupants. They were all mean looking, unwashed, some helmet wearing, others knife wielding, and some of them had missing limbs. All of them were looking at her, hands holding cups in the air like they were in the middle of a toast.

Merida stood there, unsure of what to do for a moment, both parties looking at each other in surprise. Finally, she cleared her throat.

"Ay- Ay was wondering if any of you could tell meugh where I could find these two men." She held up the poster.

A smallish, drunk, white haired man moseyed up to her. "Wha'd you want with them, eh missy?" He almost toppled with the effort of walking. Merida shyed away from him.

Suddenly he was grabbed from behind and tossed into the crowd of thugs. Another of the men stepped up to her. He pointed at the posters. "Them's the Stabbington Brothers. A nasty pair. What would a lass like you want with them." He looked intently at her and she almost gagged at the stench of his breath and body odor.

She coughed. "They have my friend. Ay have to help 'im, and to do that Ay need to know where they are." She felt her ankle twinge painfully.

The thug in front of her, a man with a bald head and hook hand, turned around to look at the others. They shrugged and shook their heads.

"Haven't seen them since yesterday." One said through a tin helmet.

"The castle guards had them didn't they?" Another asked.

"No, no they escaped to chase after Rider." A man with a big nose answered.

Hook hand turned back to Merida, who was watching with wide eyes. These ruthless looking people were acting almost normal and friendly. They were carrying on a conversation and answering her questions civilly, which was way better than the way her father and the other chiefs acted around each other. Still, it contrasted oddly with their appearance.

"No one seems to have seen them recently, sorry lass. Can't help you." He said apologetically.

"What? But, what about a secret hideout or campsite? Don't any of yeugh know where Ay could find them?" She asked. What if they couldn't tell her anything? She'd of wasted time she could have spent looking. And her ankle was still hurting!

"Sorry. I would advise you to forget about your friend and avoid those men anyhow. Bad news they are."

She groaned angrily. "Thanks anyway." She said then went out the door, her limp more pronounced.

As the door closed behind her, she heard Hook hand say, "Now where were we?" followed by a second voice, "To Flynn Rider and Rapunzel."

"To Dreams." The pub cheered.

Merida scowled. "Worthless, unhelpful lot. How could they not know where one of their own is?" She grumbled all the way to the horse. And what was that cheer all about anyway. She tripped on a rock. Stupid ankle. It hurt so much. What was the point of all this, she wondered. She was injured, it was almost midday, and she had no idea where to go. She turned the horse. She would just try going this way and if she found nothing, she would head back, she decided.

It didn't take very long for Jack to find the Stabbington's campsite. Hiccup was still tied up and in the same place where he had left him. Only one of the brothers was at camp though, sitting on a stump and whittling a stick. The captive brightened up when he saw his friend and waved a hand when the thug wasn't looking.

"How's it going?" Jack asked when he landed by the tree.

Hiccup shrugged and rolled his eyes. Alright, pretty boring actually, his expression said.

"The other one gone to deliver the ransom?"

Hiccup shook his head, then gestured towards the forest.

"Firewood, then?"

A nod.

"Well, I'm glad you're still alright." Jack said, sitting down by his friend.

The young viking gave an assuring smile and nodded. Then he gave a questioning look at Jack and tilted his head. How's everything else?

Jack understood. "I went to see Merida but she was still out cold, I didn't want to wake her up." Hiccup nodded at that. "I also overheard your father and Gobber talking. They were worried about you. If the ransom has been delivered by now, though then they should be preparing to stage an attack to get you back by now." Hiccup couldn't help a smile at that. He knew it was likely true.

"Oh, and while I was up there, I saw Flynn and Maximus making a break out from the dungeons. Long story short, Flynn got captured last night and some ruffians broke him out, it was awesome by the way. Anyhow, I joined up with them to help make sure Rapunzel is all right. He seems worried that her mother is going to hurt her or something." Jack paused and frowned, his friend gave him a worried look.

Lowering his voice Jack confided, "I have this feeling that something bad is going to happen to Flynn if I don't do something to help." He couldn't explain what it was though, but it bothered him, and he worried about whether he'd be able to do anything to help protect him.

Hiccup nodded. Everything will turn out fine, his eyes said. I believe that you'll make it work out.

Jack nodded, the comfort and the trust he saw in his best friend's eyes lifting his spirits. He smiled.

Now go. Hiccup motioned with his head. Flynn needs you more than me, I'll be fine.

"I'll be back later. Hopefully in time for the meet." He promised, then lifted up into the air. A cool breeze brushed against Hiccups hair as he watched his friend go. The Stabbington brother remained unaware that anything had happened.

Flynn had just found the way down the mountain when he felt a cool breeze that he was starting to associate with the spirit boy. He turned to see the new comer. "Find your friend alright?" He asked.

Jack nodded. "They seem to just be hanging out at their campsite until the ransom." Flynn agreed as if that was normal for the brothers. They continued on. There was a path that sloped down from the cliff to the bottom.

"I hope we can find our way from here." Flynn muttered. He was starting to get fidgety. Rapunzel was in trouble, he knew. He just felt it. "Come on Maximus." He urged the horse, which sped up down the grassy slope.

Jack followed, the uneasy feeling in his stomach growing as they got closer. His thoughts drifted to Hiccup; he hoped that his friend was still safe. The meet should be happening about now but he was sure that Stoick and the other vikings would have everything under control. He needed to make sure that Flynn and Rapunzel ended up okay, though what could happen to them, he didn't know.

"Hah!" Merida cried. She finally found traces of someone else in the forest. Hoof prints leading down a pass that led to a lower part of the forest. They had better belong to the Stabbingtons and Hiccup, she thought. Though when they had gotten the horse, she didn't know; they hadn't had one nearby before. Maybe it was waiting in the trees last night. She also noticed that there was only the one set of footprints. Maybe only one was on the horse with Hiccup tied up and one of the brothers wasn't there. Or all three were on the horse, though that didn't seem likely. There was also the possibility that these weren't in fact the Stabbington Brothers, but she had been wandering the forest all morning and was almost pass the point of caring who she found.

She urged the horse faster. Maybe she could catch up with them soon! Oh how she wanted this all to be over with; Hiccup to be safe, she to be back in bed resting this blasted ankle, and those Stabbington's to be in the dungeon where they belong. The castle must have found out that she was gone by now, and the missing horse. She'll be in trouble when she got back, she was sure. She shook her head, only one problem at a time. First things first; find the owner of the footprints. Luckily, they weren't that hard to follow.

Hiccup sat locked in a staring match. The brothers were watching him, and he was watching back. They had been like this for a while; one of them would whisper something to the other occasionally, but for the most part, they all just sat there waiting.

"So, when is that ransom thing again?" Hiccup asked to break the silence. Scar face was now sharpening his knife and the scraping sounds were beginning to grind on his nerves. Eye patch was stirring the fire with a stick.

"Noon." Scar said gruffly.

"Ah. Yeah. You mentioned that before. How much longer till then?" Hiccup looked upward, but couldn't quite tell what time it was through the trees. All this sitting around was getting him antsy.

The brothers shared a look. "Getting a little anxious to go home, little prince?" Eye patch asked, raising and eyebrow and looking Hiccup in the eye.

"Ah, me? Naw. I like it out here, though the company could be better, you know." Hiccup tried to act casually, almost putting his hands behind his head but remembering that they were supposed to be tied up. Maybe he shouldn't have worn the rope away last night with that rock.

"You're only a source of money to us." Scar replied. "As soon as we get what we asked for, you won't be having our company any longer." He approached Hiccup with his newly sharpened knife. "Now, be quiet or you won't get see your family ever again." He let the blade gently glide along Hiccup's face.

The viking gulped and kept his mouth shut. Where was Jack when he needed him to make fun in situations like these? In the background, Eye patch spoke up.

"Couldn't we just hurt him a little? He did help that girl with the magic hair get away and all, plus it's boring just waiting around."

Magic hair? Hiccup thought. Rapunzel? "For the record, I didn't help her get away, that was her mother's doing. I kind of failed at that attempt."

"Shut up." Scar said, the knife back against Hiccup's skin. "You know, it is a little boring here." He said to his brother without looking at him, his eyes locked on Hiccup's. Hiccup could see a glint in the thug's eyes and he knew that things weren't going to go well for him. "Let's have a little fun." The other thug gave an evil chuckle and approached with a grin.

Eventually Merida heard voices, two guys, she guessed, and a horse whinnied. It sounded like they were just up ahead.

"What do you mean you can't remember which way?" Came one voice.

"I mean, all I remember was falling off a cliff then finding a secret opening covered by ivy. It should be around here somewhere." Said the second voice. They weren't far now.

Merida slowed the horse, she recognized those voices. Jack and Flynn. Her shoulders slumped, she went the wrong way again and it was practically noon. She'd been out looking for forever it seemed. She came around a large bush and saw them.

Flynn was standing facing a cliff covered with ivy, scratching his head. Jack had his arms folded and was standing on the ground, tapping his foot impatiently. Flynn reached out to brush the vines away and seemed disappointed to discover rock underneath. Maximus suddenly looked up, as if he sensed Merida's presence, and gave a greeting nicker. The mare she was riding neighed in return.

Flynn and Jack looked back and noticed her at the edge of the clearing. "Merida? What are you doing here?" Jack asked. She could see a worried crease in his expression. "You should be in bed resting." His tone turned from surprised to scolding. A breeze started to blow.

"Ay was looking for Hiccup to help him. It was my fault that he was kidnapped yeugh know." Merida answered. In a way she was a little glad to have come across some familiar faces here in the forest, especially after seeing those people in the pub, but it turned to annoyance when the first thing her friend said was that she needed to be in bed. "Wait a minute, you were supposed to come and tell me how he was anyway." She edged the horse up to him and glared down at him. She wasn't going to get off the horse yet if she could help it.

Jack put his hands up innocently. "You were sleeping when I stopped by. I didn't want to wake you; you needed your rest." He stressed those last few words.

"That's no excuse." Merida answered. "Yeugh promised, Jack." She was so tired with this day.

"I was going to come back; I just got caught up with a few other things." Jack answered. "Didn't you hear anything from your mother about what was going on anyway?"

"No. She just told me that Hiccup was gone and that people were worried 'bout him" Had her mother known something more and not told her? No, she was the one that told her mother what had happened last night. What was Jack talking about?

"Oh. Well the thugs are going to ransom Hiccup at noon today. And I'm guessing that the vikings will raid the meeting area instead of giving any money." He smiled at the thought before noticing Merida's expression.

"Well, nobody told me that." Her voice was rising. "Ay've bin wandering this blasted forest all morning looking for them to help Hiccup get away. Ay've walked on this stupid ankle till it was numb. And, I've had no idea what's been going on anywhere all day." She started pacing the horse as she ranted, letting out all her pent up frustration of the day. "Ay'm tired, and achy, and frusterated, and- and hungry, and those people at the pup were strange and unhelpful." She finished, finding nothing more to complain about. She had only just realized that she was kind of hungry.

"It's not my fault that you went wandering about when you've been ordered to stay in bed." Jack argued.

"Yeugh should have come told me."

"You were sleeping."  
Merida was about to retort when a voice cut in on their argument. "I hate to interrupt, but I really do need to find Rapunzel. She's in danger if she stays with that woman any longer, so I'll just be going unless you two would like to come with me." Flynn Rider had been watching the two friends' exchange with a mixture of amusement and impatience, and finally he felt that it had gone on long enough. He was worried about Rapunzel.

Jack and Merida both stopped and looked at the third person, remembering that he was still there. "Sorry." Jack apologized. "We should get going." He looked at Merida. "And you should head back to the castle. I promise that I will come back and tell you everything that happens."

Merida snorted. "Yeah, right. Ay'm coming with you. I haven't been riding about all day for nothing."

Jack looked at the determined set in his friend's face and knew there was no arguing with her, he looked to Flynn for help. The other man just shrugged. "Let her come," He said. "Just let's go already." He mounted Maximus and started along the cliff wall, looking for anything that would indicate the hidden tunnel he had found. The other two followed.

A few minutes later, Flynn spotted the rock he had hid behind while Maximus was looking for him. He peeled back the curtain of ivy to reveal an opening in the mountain. Seconds later they were racing through it to the tower. Flynn, desperate now to see if Rapunzel was safe practically fell off the horse when they got there and called up the top.

"Rapunzel? Rapunzel, let down your hair." There was no sign of any movement. Worried he started to climb the tower by hand.

Suddenly, from above, they all heard a creak as a shutter was opened, and a second later a flood of hair was thrown from the widow to the ground. Flynn looked to the others, then began to climb the hair.


	12. Viking Confrontations

**A/N: Sorry for the wait, but here it is.**

Everything hurt.

Well, almost everything, but there was a substantial part of Hiccup's body that ached. He had bruises on his thighs and arms, a few of his ribs may be cracked, there was a cut above his eyebrow, and his metal leg was mangled.

The brothers had started by kicking him in a few places, his legs mostly. Being tied up, he could only stay immobile, and Hiccup refused to cry out. It got worse when they discovered his hands were untied; it hadn't occurred to them that he couldn't really have done much else while the rest of his body was bound. Luckily, they managed to keep the knives to a minimum…

Half-conscious they dragged him to the meeting site. The thug with the eye patch pulled him down behind a large bush nearby while the other went out into the open clearing alone. Eye patch moved some branches and from his position on the ground, Hiccup could see a little bit of what was going on.

Scar stepped up into view and could be seen greeting someone. "You're Majesties." His voice could be heard saying gruffly.

"We have come for our son," A woman's voice came. "We've the ransom yeugh asked for." That was not the reply Hiccup was expecting to hear. Who was talking? She sounded a little familiar. He tried to get a better look.

Craning his head, he was able to catch a glimpse of an emerald green dress and a plaid kilt before they moved out of view. That wasn't Stoick or Gobber, he was sure, though one of them had a wooden leg. Who were they, and why were they pretending to be his parents? And, most importantly, where was his father?

"Hand me the money, and we'll let your son go free." Scarface said. Hiccup couldn't see anyone now. "A hundred thousand gold coins. Worth ten crowns."

Eye patch smiled wickedly at the mention of the money. These two were almost obsessed with crowns, Hiccup thought. That and revenge on Flynn.

"First let us see our son." Came the strangely accented voice of a man, the kilt-wearer, Hiccup guessed. It was very weird to hear them call him their son, especially since he still had no idea who they were.

Silence, then a light thud sound as something hit the ground. Someone moved to pick it up it sounded like. "We have him nearby. We get the money, your son goes free. That's proof we have him." It must have been his notebook, Hiccup realized. They had taken it off him when they tied him up. It had all his designs and sketches in there, even some drawings of dragons from back home.

"Now, show me the money." Scar said. Eye patch shifted to get a better look from the bushes, as he did; Hiccup noticed a blur of movement in the forest behind him.

A jingle that sounded like someone in armor brought Hiccup's attention away from the woods. He could see one of the castle guards come and go from view carrying a box. He tried to reposition himself to see better, but earned himself another hit from the thug.

"Stop moving, you." Eye patch whispered. Hiccup remained still, bound and on the ground. Everything ached.

"A thousand gold crowns." Came the male voice again. Hiccup guessed that the guard had opened the box and showed the Stabbinton the contents. And judging by the hissing of steel that followed, other guards were there with swords to keep the thug from taking the money and running. "Now, where is my son?"

He craned his head again to try and see, but all he got was another glimpse of the dress and kilt, plus a peg leg from the man. A little farther up he could see a little of some guards It was too hard to hold that position to see, though.

He heard a faint snap of fingers, which must have been a sign for the eye patched brother, because he suddenly grabbed Hiccup by the nape of his jerkin and hauled him up and around the bush. Hiccup was mostly dragged, due to his broken prosthetic leg.

The thug held him up in view of the royal party with a knife to his neck. Hiccup was only a little shorter than the man, so the Stabbington had hold of him by the torso.

Hiccup now had an unobstructed view of the scene. The scar faced brother was standing on one end of the meadow with three guards, one of which was holding the chest he saw, in the middle. On the other end of the meadow, he recognized the people pretending to be his parents as other guests from the castle. The woman looked familiar, though his hazy mind couldn't place where he would have seen or met her other than in the dining hall. Why were they here?

They looked at Hiccup and noticed the state he was in. The man's expression darkened and his eyes flickered to the forest, the woman's face was tight, her mouth a thin line. She nodded to the guard with the chest, who carefully approached, placed the chest on the ground, and backed away fast.

Scar walked forward and picked up the chest and joined his brother.

"Yeaugh have the money, now let us have the boy." The man said, reaching out his hand.

"I don't think so." The first brother said, as they started to back up slowly with both Hiccup and the gold. "You see, if we let him go, what's to stop your guards from coming after us?"

"We'll just hang on to him until we're safely away." They were near the bush again.

What happened next was too fast for Hiccup's tired and beat mind to process at first. There were rustling bushes and thumps. A familiar voice came from behind him said; "Not on my watch." Then the knife disappeared from Hiccup's throat as he was tossed to the ground.

The ground hurt. Everything hurt. He grunted in pain from the impact, his eyes blurring. He blacked out for a moment and when he opened his eyes, he saw his father and Gobber standing over the bodies of the Stabbington brothers, Snotlout had the chest in his arms, and Spitelout had come over to help Hiccup up off the ground.

"Ya okay, Hiccup?" He asked.

"Could be better." The wounded viking answered, wincing. His ribs were going to need to be looked at and his leg fixed. Luckily, he had thought to bring an extra foot from Berk for the trip. You never know when you'll want your best footwear or walking ones.

His father came over and wrapped him in a bear hug that probably added a few more bruises to his collections. "I thought I'd almost lost you again." He whispered. He let go and raised his voice. "What were you thinking anyway? Putting yerself in that kind of danger?"

"It could have been worse, you know." Hiccup responded, still using Spitelout for support. "I could have not told them how rich our little island was, played on their greed."

Stoick looked confused. "But we can barely feed the village, much less have that much gold."

Gobber chimed in. "He lied to them to convince them to ransom him off instead of… well, you know." Hiccup nodded.

Understanding suddenly bloomed in the viking chief's eyes as he realized what Hiccup had meant. "I see." He grumbled. "Well, I'm glad you're safe now and all this is behind us."

The man and woman from the castle came over along with the three guards. One of them took the chest from Snotlout. Hiccup recognized suddenly recognized the couple who had helped save him; they were Merida's parents. He remembered Queen Elinor who had scolded the red head that first night for laughing too hard.

"Thank you." He said to them.

"Yer welcome." King Fergus answered. "Glad to get a break from the boring me- er, um… We were glad to um… We were glad to help rescue you." His wife had glared at him.

"We are grateful to you for helping Merida," Queen Elinor said over the king's attempts at a proper response. "It is aour pleasure to return the favor."

Hiccup nodded, abashed. "It was just instinct I guess. I mean I didn't really think about it, except to help her get away with her ankle hurt."

"Well, we thank yeugh, and if there is anything else we can do, please ask."

"Thanks, I'll remember that."

At his feet, one of the Stabbington's groaned, bringing the group's attention to the unconscious villains they now had on their hands. Queen Elinor ordered one of the guards to tie them up so that they could take them back to the castle.

Once that was done, Stoick looked at his son. "Let's get you back to the castle to rest. You look almost dead on yer feet- er foot."

"It feels like it." Hiccup said. He could use some real rest right now; everything hurt so much that just lying in bed for a day sounded good.


	13. Tower Confrontations

Jack watched Flynn climb with a sick feeling in his stomach. He couldn't explain it, but he knew that something bad will happen up in that tower. "I'm going up there." He said briefly to Merida before calling to the wind to lift him up.

Merida watched him go with frustration. Once again she was left behind as everyone else went ahead. If there was something going on up there, then she wanted to be part of it and to help if she could. There must be another way up.

She urged her horse around the tower base. There, an opening, with stones surrounding the area. It must have been closed up until recently, she guessed. She got down from her horse, favoring her ankle. It looked like she would have to go up the long way.

Jack reached the top of the towers and peered into the open window. It was dark inside, the overcast sky didn't help. A shaft of light came in from an opening in the ceiling and shone on a girl across the room. Rapunzel. She was watching the window with wide, fearful eyes, a cloth around her mouth and her hands tied to a beam behind her.

A creak to the side alerted him to the woman standing by the window with a knife. She was the danger Jack sensed. That woman was going to stab Flynn when he came in and kill him! He had to stop her, but what could he do? He couldn't touch her, or freeze her or even free Rapunzel from her chains.

Wait, he could warn Flynn . Flynn could stop her if he knew what was going to happen, right? He looked out the window. The other man was about two-thirds of the way up now. "Flynn," He called, jumping out the window and coming up level with him.

"Did you see Rapunzel?" Flynn asked through grunts of exertion. "Is she okay?"

"She's okay, sort of. Her mother has her tied up and gagged. She's going to kill you." He cut off Flynn's next questions before he could say them. "That woman is standing next to the window ready to stab you in the back the second you get up there."

Flynn looked shocked as he hung there on the rope of golden hair. "She's going to kill me?" He asked quietly as it sunk in. He could die if he went up there. Was it worth it? He shook his head, of course it was. He broke out of prison for her, gave up the crown for her. He wanted to be with her for the rest of his life, even if that means he died before he could tell her what he felt. He looked at Jack. "I still have to go up there. I have to save her if I can."

Jack nodded. He expected that much. "I'll warn you." He promised and flew back up.

A few minutes later, Flynn reached the top and climbed over the sill. "Rapunzel?" He asked through heavy breaths. He saw her there across the floor, trying to warn him through her gag.

"Now!" Jack shouted from behind him and instinctively Flynn turned. His hand hit Gothel in the cheek, startling her for a second. She hadn't expected him to turn.

She stood there with her hand on her cheek where she was hit and stared at him with malice. "This is all your fault you know." She said. "If you hadn't come here in the first place none of this would have ever happened. Rapunzel and I would still be living our happy little lives free from the outside world. But no, now I have to take her away where no one will ever find her again. And you can't be allowed to follow us." She lifted her knife and stepped toward him.

Flynn felt around for any weapons, but the guards had taken them from him when they locked him up. He was defenseless. He backed away from her. "Now, I'm sure we could come to some sort of agreement." He said, desperately trying to figure a way out of this. "Isn't there something that I could do or… no? Well I suppose that's understandable." He hit a counter and she was still coming, knife poised to stab. He reached behind him for something, anything to use against her. "You won't get away with this, you know. Things won't return to normal in your perfect little world. Not now that she's seen the world." He felt a cold breeze and his hand touched a metal handle. He swung whatever it was at her as her knife fell, anger and hatred giving her strength.

He hit the knife out of her hand with his new weapon. It was the frying pan. It must have been left out when the women had returned to the tower. "Hah, I just love these things."

Gothel had scrambled toward her knife and picked it up again. "You want to play hardball, do you?" A warm wind blew around the tower and it got even darker, Flynn could only see vague outlines, and it looked like the shadows were moving. He gripped the frying pan tighter. "Then let's play hardball." He voice came from a different part of the room.

Something shadowy moved in the corner of his eye and he swung at it, hitting nothing. He couldn't see where she was. Suddenly the shutters closed and he was wrapped in pure darkness. Cool wind and warm wind swirled around him in eddies and he heard that woman's laughter echoing through the room.

Jack found his way to the window and opened the shutters again, which let in a little light. It had started raining outside, heavy drops falling on the roof. He turned to see Gothel coming at Flynn from behind. He shouted another warning, but Flynn only managed to turn slightly before he was stabbed, the knife plunging into his side.

"Emhgnene!" Rapunzel cried through the gag, she strained against the chains holding her.

"Flynn." Jack stood by the window as the man he tried to protect went down, his bad premonition changing into a pit of grief as he failed. The cold winds around him picked up, swirling through the room.

Gothel stood calmly over Flynn amid the chaos in the tower, her bloody knife still in her hand, the victim on the floor holding his side in pain. "And now to finish this." She said. She knelt down and raised her knife again.

"Make one more moove and Ay'll put an arrow through yeah." A voice cut through the storm. Everyone stopped and looked at the newcomer, even the winds calmed down.

Merida was standing by a trapdoor, bow drawn back and arrow aimed straight at Mother Gothel. "Naow step away from him or Ay'll shoot." She said.

Gothel raised her hands and slowly stood up. "You." There was a strange look in her eyes, Jack noticed. "It can't be." She looked to Rapunzel, then Flynn, and then back at Merida.

Merida gestured for her to go to the middle of the room. "Jack, go check on Flynn." She said, her eyes never leaving the older woman.

Jack went over to Flynn, who was still on the floor. His wound was bad, going all the way through his body. He couldn't tell whether or not it was fatal or if the knife had hit anything important. He touched the wound and it frosted over a little. How did that happen, he wondered. His frost normally didn't affect people directly. Flynn hissed in pain, but it seemed to slow the bleeding a little. Jack had an idea. He touched the wound directly and had it frost completely over, then he touched the other side of the wound and did the same, completely sealing it from bleeding.

"How's that?" He asked, trying to sit Flynn up against the counter.

"Cold." Flynn replied. "But a little better."

Gothel was looking around the room. "Jack who?" She asked Merida, a strange tone in her voice. "Overland? Where is he?"

"Neugh. Yeh can't see 'im. And he came over air, not land." The redhead answered.

"Not over land, you foolish girl. Jack Overland, is he here with you?"

Merida shook her head. "Ay don't know him."

"Wait, why does that sound familiar?" Jack asked. Something about that name felt familiar. Like something he once knew but forgotten long ago. "Jack Overland…" Somewhere in his memory he heard a voice saying that name sternly to a young boy with brown hair in reprimand. Could it be? Is that who he was before? How would she know anything about that though.

"Jack, you okay?" Merida asked, she let her bow drop a little.

He looked at her with wide eyes. "I think… I think I may be Jack Overland. Before… I became Jack Frost."

Gothel took advantage of Merida's distraction and lunged, her knife whirling in the air towards Merida. It missed, going through her mass of curls and hitting the wood behind her. Flynn had gotten up and, holding his side swung the frying pan at her. He missed, but she was weaponless now and with Merida holding the bow to her and Flynn approaching her for another blow she could only back away.

Rapunzel's hair was still hanging from the window and as Gothel got closer, pushed back by the other two, a small green chameleon lifted a section of the golden locks and pulled it tight. Mother Gothel's tripped over the hair and fell backwards out of the tower window. Jack, Merida, and Flynn rushed to the window after her, but couldn't see her body below. Gothel was just, gone.

Ahead, the sky was clearing up and the sunlight was starting to shine. The silence was stark after what had just happened and the three just stood there for a long moment in confusion.

"What just happened?" Flynn Rider finally asked, breaking the silence.

"Ay don't know." Merida answered thoughtfully.

"Who was I before?" Jack wondered quietly.

Flynn gave a sharp intake of breath as the frost on his wound melted and stabs of pain cut through him. He sank to the floor clutching his wound. Jack and Merida tried to help support him. A rustle of chains and muffled cry reminded them that Rapunzel was still tied up. Merida got up to help her.

Once free, Rapunzel ran over to Flynn. "Eugene. Oh Eugene." He coughed and groaned. "I'm so sorry this happened to you. It's all my fault." She murmured over him.

"Shh. Rapunzel. It okay." He was shivering and weak.

"I'm going to fix all this. I'll make you better." She was bunching her hair onto his wound.

He looked into her eyes. "I'm sorry I left you." He whispered.

"You came back though." Rapunzel had tears in her eyes.

"I had to tell you something. That I had a new dream now." He reached up to brush her hair back from her face, his fingers caressing her cheek as they came back. "You."

Rapunzel took his hand in hers and held it there. "And you're mine." She smiled.

Jack and Merida stood back, watching the exchange. "Should we go?" The winter spirit asked quietly.

"Shh." Merida put her hand on Jack's shoulder, her eyes watching the scene with a dreamy expression on her face.

The two lovers stared at each other for a moment, until Flynn issued at hiss of pain and his hand reached up to clutch his wound, still covered in hair.

"Oh, sorry." Rapunzel exclaimed. "Don't worry, I can fix this." She rearranged her hair to cover the wound better, then with her hands coving his over the wound, she closed her eyes, and began to sing softly.

_Flower, gleam and glow,_

_Let your power shine,_

_Make the clock reverse,_

_Bring back what once was mine._

_Heal what has been hurt,_

_Change the fates design,_

_Save what has been lost,_

_Bring back what once was mine,_

_What once was mine._

As her voice echoed through the tower, her hair began to emit a light that traveled down the strands, twisting along a path that wound around the room, returned to the clump in Rapunzel's hands, then spread out to the end which was hanging out the window. The two observers watched with wide eyes as the magic occurred.

As Rapunzel fell silent, the golden glow went out and it became shadowy and dark again. Flynn was breathing easier and as he lifted the mass of hair, and moved the cloth covering the wound, all could see the skin as unblemished and smooth.

"So it heals." Jack realized, thinking back on the night he first saw them in the forest. Was it really two days ago? She must have been healing a wound on Flynn's hand.

Merida glanced at Jack, still confused at what had just happened, then to Rapunzel and Flynn, then back. "Wha't just happened?"

The other two looked at her, as if just realizing her presence. "Her hair glows and can heal things." Flynn answered as they got up.

"Uh-huh."

"Thank you so much for helping Eugene, um…" Rapunzel tried to remember the red-heads name.

"Merida."

"Merida!" She flung her arms around her and hugged her. "I don't want to think about what would have happened if you hadn't shown up when you did."

"I-uh, Ay'm glad I could help." Merida answered, startled.

"And I'm still invisible." Jack muttered. He turned to Flynn. "So, why does she call you Eugene? I thought your name was Flynn."

"It's my real name. The other one I made up when I became a thief."

"What was that?" Rapunzel let go of Merida.

"I was just saying how my real name is Eugene Fitzherbert and I used the name Flynn Rider when I started gaining reputation as a thief." Flynn/Eugene explained.

"Okay…" Rapunzel said, slightly confused.

"Really?" Merida asked, interested.

"That makes a little more sense." Jack said.

Eugene nodded. "I think that I'll go by this name from now on." He put an arm around Rapunzel. "I'm going to turn over a new leaf. No more stealing, no more running from the guards, no more working with those backstabbing Stabbington's."

Stabbington… "Hiccup!" Jack exclaimed suddenly. "His ransom!"

"Is it noon already?" Merida asked. She rushed to the window. The sun was shining overhead and all traces of the clouds from before were gone. "We have to go make sure Hiccup is okay."

"We'll come with you." Flynn/Eugene stated. "It's the least we can do." He started moving toward the trapdoor but Rapunzel stopped him.

"We can use my hair to get down." She reminded him.

"Right."

Soon they were racing back through the forest. Eugene and Rapunzel on Maximus and Merida on the mare she borrowed. Jack flew alongside them, leading them to the place that was arranged for the ransom.


End file.
